Best (Worst) Farmer Ever

By Pat Cummins  & Michael Wagner

Illustrated by Louis Shea

Reviewed by Margarite Igras

Well known Australian cricketer Pat Cummins shows his other sides in this heartwarming picture book for ages 3 to 7.  Author Michael Wagner has captured the life of the cricketer away from the limelight, based on some of his experiences as a first-time farmer and dad. It reveals Cummins as a gentle apprentice having quality time with his son, on a farm that requires regular work, but utilising some strange solutions that may surprise the younger reader.  The illustrations are a visual treat, with the antics in the background that includes a wombat running away with the cricket bat, and sheep working as a team to jump over the fence.

Pat, his son Albie and Normie the dog, are about to spend the day on the farm. They don’t have any specific tasks, but Pat tells his son Albie “If you keep your eyes open, you’ll always find something to do! Well, it’s not long before they spot the hole in the fence, the leak in the water trough and those birds that are still eating all the apples.  There is laugh-out-loud humour in Pat’s unique solutions such as the gathering of a mottled selection of yellow items to mend the hole in the fence because Cows are scared of yellow things.

Louis Shea’s colourful, illustrations add a wonderful layer to the story, especially the expressions on the animals observing this father and son. There are also several cricketing items embedded in the pages such as the stumps, shin pads, cricket bat, and the “How’s That” Cummins stand after he completed repairing the hole in the fence.

The text consists mainly of the warm interaction between father and son. Albie thinks his dad has the most amazing ideas, while the apprentice Farmer Pat chews on the idea that there’s nothing like practice to get a job done well!  The colourful illustrations are not only funny but very Aussie, with a catalogue of cheeky pets (farm animals), as well as the ubiquitous kangaroos, lorikeets, wombat, kookaburra and galahs.

A fun read with humorous illustrations, and a cricket captain prepared to show a lesser-known side of his abilities (or lack of).

HarperCollinsAU 2025