Latest book takes Farmer Boris to Thialf in Heerenveen: ‘We were deeply impressed by that impressive hall’

In the 18th part of the picture book series Farmer Boris the company and its animals end up in Thialf. Writer Ted van Lieshout and artist Philip Hopman developed the character in 2012 based on one of the illustrator’s children who wore blue overalls and red boots. Since then, the popular character, who runs a farm with his brother and sister, has become an indispensable part of the Dutch children’s book landscape. There are more than 720,000 copies Farmer Boris sold and there is a theater performance.

As far as the makers are concerned, the end of the series is nowhere in sight. Ted van Lieshout says that they always have plenty of new ideas and that he even has a few Farmer Boris -stories in stock. Van Lieshout: “I have several drafts for stories that are not completely finished yet. We discuss together what kind of story we want. Philip sometimes wants to make drawings that take place outside the farm again.” In the 10th part, Farmer Boris and the hot air balloon the little farmer goes on a trip to the South Pole when there is a penguin egg in the yard.

Snowman Bob is melting, every second counts

In the most recent part Boer Boris and the snowman something similar happens, but in the other direction. When it starts snowing, Farmer Boris, his brother Berend and sister Sam, make a beautiful snowman that they call Bob and to whom they immediately become attached. Then the thaw sets in and Bob melts.

Van Lieshout makes ‘the snowman melts’ rhyme with ‘the thaw comes with brute force’ and ‘every second counts.’ To save Bob, they travel with the snowman on a crane to Thialf, a place where it is cold. ‘We have to travel right away. There is always ice cream in Heerenveen.’

The really cold places are in the far north

Two large prints show the melting snowman standing among the skaters on the ice of Thialf. As always, the farm animals are also present and so the pig, the cow and the calf also have skates on. Snowman Bob is not really warmly welcomed by the other skaters because he is quite in the way.

It is clear that Bob cannot stay in Thialf. ‘Farmer Boris asks: ‘Where should he go then? / Where is it colder than Heerenveen?’/ ‘Well,’ says a skater, ‘the really cold places / are all in the far north.’ Farmer Boris plans to go to the North Pole by helicopter, but not with everyone: ‘Only Clara and her calf, they stay behind in Thialf’.

On a working visit to the ice rink

Van Lieshout and Hopman went on a working visit to Heerenveen for the book. Van Lieshout: “We do that often, to get a taste of the atmosphere and, moreover, we get out of it.” They were very welcome in Thialf on a morning when the hall was almost empty. There were only a few competitive skaters training.

Hopman and Van Lieshout had both never been to Thialf before. “We were deeply impressed by that impressive hall and also by the ice. It was great to walk around and take photos that Philip used for the drawings.”