Philosophy for all – in pictures: ‘Begin Again’ by Oliver Jeffers

As I began to read this book, news of the renewal of appalling violence in Israel and Gaza was on TV screens and online. It made the message in this, Oliver Jeffers’ first picture book for adults and children, feel very timely indeed.

In Jeffers’ inimitable style, the pictures and pared back words in this lovely book are his plea to humanity: surely, given how far we have come as a species, and the amazing leaps in knowledge and technology we have achieved, surely…we can find a way to ‘begin again’ with our relationships with ourselves, with others, and with our planet?

He traces our beginnings as humans: the way we discovered walking upright, using fire, making tools, creating beauty…all the way to the invention of phones and space rockets.

But oh dear, we took a wrong turn somewhere early on, when humans began to

… draw imaginary lines, so we know who we are and who we are not,
where we belong and where we do not,
taking what we want when we want it.
The kings in our castles
on our islands of isolation.
Admired by strangers
(safe from those strangers)…

Though, when we look from far enough
it is clear that we all come from Earth.
There is only Us.

We all love stories and sharing them, because stories:

…gave us safe harbour and an idea
of where we fit in the long line of time.

Jeffers explore what, why and how things went wrong for us as humans, and suggests how we might correct our course:

By slowing down.
By creating better stories.
Bigger ones
where we all fit
inside the same powerful plot.

In his Author’s Note, he explains the changes in his thinking that began after his son was born, and how this book is a culmination of ‘observation and optimism.’

I’d suggest that humanity as a whole, no matter who we are or where we live, needs a hefty dose of optimism right now, and also awareness and compassion.

This book is one that can be shared by adults with children of all ages, and might just help provide some of those essential ingredients for a happier and safer world.

Begin Again is published by HarperCollins in November 2023.
My thanks to the publishers for a review copy.