Vero - Wikipedia - User contributions [en]

Tarpaulin

2025-10-23T07:17:12Z

193.44.11.94: /* See also */

{{Short description|Large sheet of strong, flexible, water-resistant or waterproof material}}
{{Other uses|Tarp (disambiguation){{!}}Tarp}}
{{pp-pc1|small=yes}}
[[Image:Tarpaulin fly tent.jpg|thumb|right|An improvised tent using polytarp as a [[Fly (tent)|fly]]]]
[[File:Abandoned homeless shelter Mawson Canberra.JPG|thumb|Abandoned homeless shelter using plastic tarp]]
A '''tarpaulin''' ({{IPAc-en|t|ɑr|ˈ|p|ɔː|l|ɪ|n}} {{respell|tar|PAW|lin}},<ref>{{cite web|url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/tarpaulin|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214014533/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/tarpaulin|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 14, 2017|title=tarpaulin - Definition of tarpaulin in English by Oxford Dictionaries|website=Oxford Dictionaries - English}}</ref> {{IPAc-en|also|US|ˈ|t|ɑr|p|ə|l|ɪ|n}}<ref>{{Dictionary.com|tarpaulin}}</ref>) or '''tarp''' is a large sheet of strong, flexible, water-resistant or [[waterproof]] material, often [[cloth]] such as [[canvas]] or [[polyester]] coated with [[polyurethane]], or made of [[plastic]]s such as [[polyethylene]]. Tarpaulins often have reinforced [[grommet]]s at the corners and along the sides to form attachment points for [[rope]], allowing them to be tied down or suspended.

Inexpensive modern tarpaulins are made from woven polyethylene; This material has become so commonly used for tarpaulins that people in some places refer to it colloquially as '''"poly tarp"''' or '''"polytarp"'''.

==Etymology==
The word ''tarpaulin'' originated as a [[compound word|compound]] of the words ''tar'' and ''palling'', referring to a [[tar]]red canvas pall used to cover objects on [[ships]]. Sailors often tarred their own overclothes in the same manner as the sheets or palls. By association, [[sailors]] became known as "jack tars".<ref>[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=tar Tar], ''[[Online Etymology Dictionary]]''</ref>{{better source|date=May 2019}}

In the mid-19th century, ''paulin'' was used for such a cloth.{{Citation needed|date=May 2019}}

==Uses==
[[File:VW T5 Doppelkabine-Pritsche-Plane Seitenansicht-links LWS3143.JPG|thumb|Truck with tarpaulin to cover cargo]]
[[Image:WRESTLEMANIA.JPG|thumb|left|A tarpaulin being used to keep rain off a stage]]

Tarpaulins are used in many ways to protect persons and things from wind, rain, and sunlight. They are used during construction or after disasters to protect partially built or damaged structures,<ref>{{Cite book|title=Brickwork : for CAA Construction Diploma and NVQs. Level 2|last=(Malcolm)|first=Thorpe, M.|date=2010|publisher=Newnes|others=Hodge, J. C. (John Charles)|isbn=9781856177658|location=Oxford|oclc=477290692}}</ref> to prevent mess during painting and similar activities, and to contain and collect debris. They are used to protect the loads of open trucks and wagons, to keep [[wood pile]]s dry, and for shelters such as [[tent]]s or other temporary structures.

[[Image:perforated pvc tarp.jpg|thumb|right|A perforated tarpaulin]]
Tarpaulins are also used for advertisement printing, most notably for billboards. Perforated tarpaulins are typically used for medium to large [[advertising]], or for protection on scaffoldings; the aim of the perforations (from 20% to 70%) is to reduce wind vulnerability.

Polyethylene tarpaulins have also proven to be a popular source when an inexpensive, water-resistant fabric is needed. Many amateur builders of [[plywood]] [[sailboat]]s turn to polyethylene tarpaulins for making their sails, as it is inexpensive and easily worked. With the proper type of [[adhesive tape]], it is possible to make a serviceable [[polytarp sails|sail]] for a small boat with no [[sewing]].

Plastic tarps are sometimes used as a [[building material]] in communities of indigenous North Americans.<ref name="dear-listener-program">{{cite book|title=Printed program for Dear Listener: Works by Nicholas Galanin|date=2018}}</ref> [[Tipi]]s made with tarps are known as [[tarpees]].<ref name="hopper">{{cite news |last1=Hopper |first1=Frank |title="Those Are Sacred": A First-Person Account From the Tipi Demonstration That Shut Down Traffic |url=https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2018/05/10/26161615/those-are-sacred-a-first-person-account-from-the-tipi-demonstration-that-shut-down-traffic |access-date=16 July 2018 |newspaper=The Stranger |date=10 May 2018}}</ref>

== Types ==
Tarpaulins can be classified based on a diversity of factors, such as material type ([[polyethylene]], [[canvas]], [[vinyl (fabric)|vinyl]], etc.), thickness, which is generally measured in [[Thousandth of an inch|mils]] or generalized into categories (such as "regular duty", "heavy duty", "super heavy duty", etc.), and [[grommet]] strength (simple vs. reinforced), among others.

Actual tarp sizes are generally about three to five percent smaller in each dimension than nominal size;{{cn|date=September 2020}}{{clarify |is this a worldwide tendency|date=September 2020}} for example, a tarp nominally {{cvt|20|x|20|ft}} will actually measure about {{cvt|19|x|19|ft}}.
Grommets may be [[aluminum]], [[stainless steel]], or other materials. Grommet-to-grommet distances are typically between {{cvt|18|in}} and {{cvt|5|ft}}. The [[Weaving|weave count]] is often between 8 and 12 per square inch: the greater the count, the greater its strength. Tarps may also be washable or non-washable and [[waterproof]] or non-waterproof, and [[rot-proof|mildewproof]] vs. non-mildewproof. Tarp [[flexibility]] is especially significant under cold conditions.

===Type of material ===

==== Polyethylene ====
[[File:NationalCityPNC.jpg|thumb|right|Advertisement printed on a tarp]]

A [[polyethylene]] tarpaulin ("polytarp") is not a traditional fabric, but rather, a [[laminate]] of woven and sheet material. The center is loosely woven from strips of [[polyethylene]] plastic, with sheets of the same material bonded to the surface. This creates a fabric-like material that resists stretching well in all directions and is waterproof. Sheets can be either of [[low density polyethylene]] (LDPE) or [[high density polyethylene]] (HDPE). When treated against [[ultraviolet]] light, these tarpaulins can last for years exposed to the elements, but non-[[UV]] treated material will quickly become brittle and lose strength and water resistance if exposed to sunlight.

====Canvas====
[[Canvas]] tarpaulins are not 100% waterproof, though they are water resistant. Thus, while a small amount of water for a short period of time will not affect them, when there is standing water on canvas tarps, or when water cannot quickly drain away from canvas tarps, the standing water will drip through this type of tarp.

====Vinyl====
[[Polyvinyl chloride]] ("vinyl") tarpaulins are industrial-grade and intended for heavy-duty use. They are constructed of {{cvt|10|oz/sqyd|g/m2}} coated yellow vinyl. This makes it waterproof and gives it a high [[Abrasion (mechanical)|abrasion]] resistance and tear strength. These resist oil, acid, grease and [[mildew]]. The vinyl tarp is ideal for agriculture, construction, industrial, trucks, flood barrier and temporary roof repair.

==== Silnylon ====
{{main|silnylon}}

[[Tarp tent]]s may be made of [[silnylon]].

===U.S. color scheme===
{{One source|section|date=February 2021}}

For years manufacturers have used a [[color code]] to indicate the grade of tarpaulins, but not all manufacturers follow this traditional method of grading. Following this color-coded system, blue indicates a lightweight tarp, and typically has a weave count of 8×8 and a thickness of {{cvt|0.005|-|0.006|in}}. Silver is a heavy-duty tarp and typically has a weave count of 14×14 and a thickness of {{cvt|0.011|-|0.012|in}}.

Some of the more common colors in that scheme are:
{|class=wikitable
!colspan=2|Color!!Name!!Approx. thickness
|-
|style="background:dodgerblue"| ||Blue||light-duty tarp||{{cvt|0.005|-|0.006|in}}
|-
|style="background:gold"| ||Yellow or orange||medium-duty tarp||{{cvt|0.007|-|0.008|in}}
|-
|style="background:forestgreen"| ||Green||medium-duty tarp||{{cvt|0.009|-|0.010|in}}
|-
|style="background:silver"| ||Silver||heavy-duty tarp||{{cvt|0.011|-|0.012|in}}
|-
|style="background:sienna"| ||Brown||super-heavy-duty tarp||{{cvt|0.016|in}}
|}

== See also ==
* [[Awning]]
* [[Basha (tarpaulin)]]
* [[Fly (tent)]]
* [[Loue (tent)]]
* [[Tarp tent]]
* [[Tonneau cover]]
* [[Visqueen]]

== References ==
{{Wiktionary|tarp|tarpaulin|paulin}}
{{Commons category|Tarpaulins}}
{{Reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Camping equipment]]
[[Category:Textiles]]
[[Category:Manufactured goods]]

Vanuatu vatu

2025-10-14T10:50:55Z

193.44.11.94:

{{short description|Currency of Vanuatu}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox currency
| image_1 =
| image_title_1 = 10 Vatu coin
| iso_code = VUV
| date_of_introduction = 1981
| using_countries = {{flag|Vanuatu}}
| plural = vatu
| inflation_rate = 3.9%
| inflation_source_date = ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20070613003823/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2092.html The World Factbook]'', 2007 est.
| name_abbr = VT
| frequently_used_coins = VT 5, VT 10, VT 20, VT 50, VT 100<ref name="RBV"/>
| rarely_used_coins = VT 1, VT 2 (discontinued; still legal tender)
| frequently_used_banknotes = VT 200, VT 500, VT 1,000, VT 2,000, VT 5,000, VT 10,000<ref name="RBV"/>
| issuing_authority = [[Reserve Bank of Vanuatu]]
| issuing_authority_website = {{URL|www.rbv.gov.vu}}
| replaced_currency = [[New Hebrides franc]] (at par)
}}

The '''vatu''' ([[currency sign|abbreviation]]: '''VT''';<ref name="RBV">The Reserve Bank of Vanuatu. "[http://www.rbv.gov.vu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=220&Itemid=74&lang=en Current Banknotes and Coins in Circulation]." Accessed 2 March 2013. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180802131952/http://www.rbv.gov.vu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=220&Itemid=74&lang=en |date=2 August 2018 }}</ref> [[ISO 4217|ISO code]]: '''VUV''') is the currency of [[Vanuatu]]. It has no subdivisions.

== Etymology ==

The term ''vatu'', used in all three official languages of [[Vanuatu]] (English, French, and [[Bislama]]), was borrowed from the word for "stone" in some indigenous languages (such as [[Raga language|Raga]] ''vatu''). Ultimately, it descends from [[Proto-Oceanic language|Proto-Oceanic]] ''*patu'', from [[Proto-Malayo-Polynesian language|Proto-Malayo-Polynesian]] and [[Proto-Austronesian language|Proto-Austronesian]] ''*batu'' of the same meaning.

== Exchange rate ==

{{Exchange rate|VUV|THB|EUR|JPY|USD}}

==History==

The vatu was introduced in 1981, one year after independence, to replace the [[New Hebrides franc]] at par.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Turner |first=Jay |date=29 June 2020 |title=An Emergency Coin for a Country That No Longer Exists |url=https://www.pcgseurope.com/article/an-emergency-coin-for-a-country-that-no-longer-exists |access-date=14 May 2023 |website=PCGS Europe}}</ref> The vatu was issued as a single unit with no subdivision, with the 1 vatu coin being the smallest denomination issued, in a similar vein to the (post-1953) [[Japanese yen]] and the [[Tajikistani rouble|Tajikistani ruble]] (although that had an official if theoretical subdivision).

The ISO 4217 currency code for the Vanuatu vatu is VUV. Its nationally recognized symbol Vt is the most often used in written format.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=VUV {{!}} Vanuatu Vatu {{!}} OANDA |url=https://www1.oanda.com/currency/iso-currency-codes/VUV |access-date=2023-05-14 |website=www1.oanda.com}}</ref> The vatu's introduction also saw the end of the official circulation of the [[Australian dollar]] in Vanuatu.<ref name=":0" />

==Coins==

{{More citations needed section|date=February 2024}}

Vanuatu's first post-colonial coin was a 50 vatu coin introduced in 1981 and commemorated 1 year of independence. It was struck in pure nickel like previous issues and was released into circulation, though originally its release was targeted more towards collectors. Shortly thereafter, in 1983, 1, 2, and 5 vatu coins were released in aluminium bronze and 10, 20, and 50-vatu coins were introduced in cupro-nickel, replacing the coinage of the New Hebrides Franc as the new circulation currency. This also replaced the Australian currency that was circulating in the British controlled islands. All Vanuatuan coins depict the [[Vanuatuan coat of arms]], consisting of a native warrior in front of a whorled pig's tusk, a traditional item of value. The reverses depict other traditional items of value.

Due to Vanuatu's French colonial history, the current vatu coins have the same size and coloration of the coins of New Hebrides which are based in part on French units, particularly the 1, 2, and 5 vatu in their similarity in size and composition to the 5, 10, and 20 centimes of the old [[French Franc]]. The 10, 20, and 50 vatu bear some similarities to Australian coins but are actually slightly larger with closer approximate size to coins of similar valuation to those in [[New Caledonia]], and [[French Polynesia]]. In 1988, a nickel-brass 100 vatu coin was introduced, this coin replaced the 100 vatu note. The coin is of the same size and general thickness of the British 1 pound coin.

In 2011, the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu [[Withdrawal of low-denomination coins|ceased to issue]] 1 and 2 vatu coins, which had become infrequently used due to inflation.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.rbv.gov.vu/attachments/article/253/RBV%20statement%20on%20status%20of%20Vt1%20and%20Vt2%20and%20Rounding%20-%20English.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=25 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160910021543/http://www.rbv.gov.vu/attachments/article/253/RBV%20statement%20on%20status%20of%20Vt1%20and%20Vt2%20and%20Rounding%20-%20English.pdf |archive-date=10 September 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The coins are still legal tender. Cash transactions in Vanuatu stores are now [[Cash rounding|rounded]] to the nearest 5 vatu.

As part of a coinage reform, new coins were minted in 2015 by the [[Royal Australian Mint]]. The older coins remained in circulation and legal tender.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ramint.gov.au/media/press-releases/2015/20150304.cfm |title=Australia mints world history with new circulating coin for Cook Islands, Tonga & Vanuatu [04/03/2015] |access-date=13 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150311125244/http://www.ramint.gov.au/media/press-releases/2015/20150304.cfm |archive-date=11 March 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

These coins are denominated 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 vatu.

{|class="wikitable"
|+ Old coinage series (still legal tender)
!Denomination!!Composition!!Diameter!!Design on reverse
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 1||rowspan="3"|Nickel-brass||16 mm||rowspan="3"|Shell
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 2||19 mm
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 5||23 mm
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 10||rowspan="3"|Cupro-nickel||24 mm||rowspan="2"|Coconut crab
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 20||28 mm
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 50||33 mm||Yams
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 100||Nickel-brass||23 mm||Coconuts
|}

{|class="wikitable"
|+ Newer coinage series
!Denomination!!Composition!!Diameter!!Design on reverse
|-{{Coin-copper-color}}
|VT 5||[[Copper]]-plated [[steel]]||19 mm||Traditional outrigger canoe
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 10||[[Nickel]]-plated [[steel]]||21 mm||Coconut crab
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 20||[[Nickel]]-plated [[steel]]||24.2 mm||Traditional [[Tribal chief|chiefs]]
|-{{Coin-silver-color}}
|VT 50||[[Nickel]]-plated [[steel]]||27 mm||Kava and coconut
|-{{Coin-yellow-color}}
|VT 100||[[Aluminum]]-[[zinc]]-[[bronze]]||23.25 mm||Parliament building
|}

==Banknotes==

On 22 March 1982, notes were introduced by the Central bank of Vanuatu in denominations of 100, 500, and 1,000 vatu.<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Linzmayer | first1 = Owen | title = The Banknote Book | chapter = Vanuatu | publisher = BanknoteNews.com | year = 2012 | location = San Francisco, CA | url = http://www.banknotebook.com}}</ref> These officially replaced franc notes of the former New Hebrides. In 1988 the 100 vatu note was withdrawn from circulation and replaced by a 100 vatu coin. In 1989, 5,000 vatu notes were introduced.

In 1993, after a financial restructure, the [[Reserve Bank of Vanuatu]] took over paper money issuance and introduced newly designed notes for 500 and 1,000 vatu. 200-vatu notes were first introduced in 1995 to cut down on the amount of 100 vatu coins received in change and the need to meet demand by producing more. In 2011, new 5,000 vatu notes were also issued in polymer.<ref>[http://banknotenews.com/files/tag-vanuatu.php], BanknoteNews.com. Retrieved 2010-09-10.</ref> Polymer 10,000 notes were issued as a commemorative issue on 28 July 2010. As of 2013, they are no longer in circulation.<ref name="RBV"/> On 9 June 2014, the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu introduced a new series of notes printed on polymer, among the new series of notes is a new denomination of 2,000 vatu, in addition to regular 10,000 vatu notes.<ref>[http://banknotenews.com/files/3010b574f705c986bf11a3feec8c0aa2-3032.php Vanuatu new 200-, 1,000-, and 2,000-vatu polymer notes confirmed] BanknoteNews.com. 16 July 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-14.</ref>

==Dollar==

{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2018}}

Local residents sometimes refer to a notional '''dollar''', equal to 100 vatu, without specifying which country's currency they have in mind. This stems from the period 1966–1973, when the [[New Hebrides franc]] was pegged to the [[Australian dollar]] at a rate of 100 francs = 1 dollar. Although no relationship currently exists, it simplifies thinking in the larger numbers which a low-value unit causes. For example, the Government's budget of VT 6,000,000,000 is in fact only about US$50,000,000.

The concept of this notional ''dollar'' was supported by the size of the former 100 vatu coin: at 23 mm, it was comparable to the [[Australian one-dollar coin|Australian $1]] (25 mm) and the [[New Zealand one dollar coin|New Zealand $1]] (23 mm) but the thickness is equivalent to the [[one pound (British coin)|twelve-sided British £1 coin]]. It has now been replaced by a [[Scalloped edge|scalloped]] version.

==Pounds and shillings==

In some Vanuatuan languages, in which counting in large numbers is cumbersome and not well known, 10 vatu is colloquially referred to as "one shilling", and 200 vatu is referred to as "one pound". For example, in the [[Apma language]], "50 vatu" would be ''selen kalim'' "five shillings".<ref>Gray 2013, ''The Languages of Pentecost Island''</ref> This roughly reflects the historical exchange rate of the vatu against the pound, although since 2008 the number of vatu to the pound has been significantly lower.

==Alternative currencies in Vanuatu==

Many communities in Vanuatu continue to conduct ceremonial business such as the paying of fines and bride-prices using traditional items of value, such as pigs, curved boars' tusks and long dyed mats. Vatu is sometimes used as a substitute for traditional valuables in such ceremonies, although the [[Malvatumauri|National Council of Chiefs]] discourages this.

The [[Tangbunia Bank|Tangbunia bank]], based on Pentecost Island in Vanuatu, offers accounts and transfers denominated in [[livatu]], a unit of currency equivalent to the value of a fully curved boar's tusk.

==See also==

* [[Economy of Vanuatu]]

==References==

{{Reflist}}
*{{numis cite SCWC|date=1991}}
*{{numis cite SCWPM|date=1994}}

==External links==
* [https://en.numista.com/catalogue/vanuatu-1.html Coins from Vanuatu] (Numista)

{{Vanuatu topics}}
{{Currencies of Oceania}}
{{Portal bar|Money|Numismatics|Oceania}}

[[Category:Currencies of Oceania]]
[[Category:Currencies introduced in 1982]]
[[Category:Economy of Vanuatu]]
[[Category:Circulating currencies]]

The Children Act (novel)

2025-09-19T12:04:25Z

193.44.11.94: /* Plot */

{{short description|2014 novel by Ian McEwan}}
{{about|the novel|the film|The Children Act (film)|the Act of Parliament|Children Act 1989}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2015}}
{{Infobox book
| name = The Children Act
| image = File:ChildrenAct UK 200.jpg
| border = yes
| caption = First edition (UK)
| author = [[Ian McEwan]]
| illustrator =
| cover_artist = [[Gilles Peress]]<br />([[Magnum Photos]])
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| subject =
| genre =
| publisher = [[Jonathan Cape]] (UK)<br />[[Nan A. Talese]] (US)
| pub_date = 2 Sept 2014 (UK)<br />9 Sept 2014 (US)
| media_type =
| pages = 224 pages
| isbn = 978-0-224-10199-8
| oclc =
| dewey =
| congress =
}}
'''''The Children Act''''' is a novel by the English writer [[Ian McEwan]]. It was published on 2 September 2014. The title is a reference to the [[Children Act 1989]], a UK [[Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom|Act of Parliament]]. The book has been compared to [[Charles Dickens]]'s ''[[Bleak House]]'', with its similar settings, and opening lines.<ref name=LR>[https://literaryreview.co.uk/family-matters ''Literary Review'' - Sam Leith on ''The Children Act'' by Ian McEwan] Retrieved 2024-04-09.</ref>

== Plot ==
Fiona Maye is a respected [[High Court judge (England and Wales)|High Court Judge]] specialising in [[English family law|Family Law]] and living in [[Gray's Inn]] Square. While reviewing a case, she is approached by her husband, Jack, who tells her that because of their lack of physical intimacy he would like to embark on a sexual affair, with her permission, with a 28-year-old statistician. Fiona is horrified and refuses to agree to Jack's terms. Fiona had developed a horror of the body after presiding over a case in which she ruled that [[conjoined twins]] should be separated despite the fact that one twin would immediately die due to her verdict. Though her peers lauded her elegant solution to the case, Fiona is privately troubled by it but nevertheless refuses to share this detail with Jack. In the middle of their fight, Fiona receives a call about an emergency case of a young teenager with [[leukaemia]] who [[Jehovah's Witnesses and blood transfusions|refuses a blood transfusion as a member of Jehovah's Witnesses]]. Jack leaves the apartment.

Going to work Fiona finds herself pondering her marriage, her childlessness (in part due to her dedication to her career). Impulsively she decides to change the locks to her home despite knowing that this is illegal. Returning home she realizes that Jack has not returned or tried to contact her.

The following day Fiona hears arguments for the case involving Adam, the young Jehovah's Witness. As he is only three months shy of his 18th birthday Fiona decides to visit him in the hospital to try to ascertain whether he is capable of denying treatment or not. She finds him a precocious and kind boy and he reads her poetry and plays a tune on his violin with her, with Fiona joining him by singing to his playing in an encore. Returning to court she rules that the hospital be allowed to give him the blood transfusion. Feeling elated with her decision she walks home and, upon returning, discovers that Jack has returned feeling foolish about his attempts to leave her. Fiona realizes that everything will eventually go back to normal and is ultimately disappointed that he returned at a time when she was happy and actually anticipating being alone.

Months later Fiona's marriage is still tense. She begins to receive letters, at first at her work, and later at her apartment, from Adam Henry, telling her he is now grateful for her ruling and that he sees the hypocrisy in his parents and has become disillusioned with religion. Fiona decides to ignore the letters. Travelling to [[Newcastle upon Tyne|Newcastle]] to oversee local cases, she is surprised to find that Adam has followed her there, desperate to talk to her. Adam eventually confesses that he has left home and wants to live with Fiona. She refuses his request and tells him to call his mother. Arranging for a taxi and a train ticket she goes to kiss him on the cheek goodbye, but the two end up kissing on the lips. Panicked after the kiss, Fiona calls her husband to arrange for dinner when she returns and the two begin to reconcile.

Returning home Fiona and Jack slowly grow closer to one another. Fiona receives another letter from Adam, a religious poem, which implies that he thinks of her as Satan for tempting him away from religion and has returned to the faith. Like his other letters, Fiona ignores it.

Fiona prepares for a Christmas concert to be performed before her colleagues. The night before the concert she and Jack reconcile with a kiss and promise to dedicate themselves to each other anew. Going to the concert, before she performs, Fiona is informed that Adam has died after his leukaemia returned and he refused treatment, now being of the age of majority. Fiona performs at the concert and then runs home. When Jack returns she tells him of the case, the kiss, and his death, feeling guilty for kissing Adam and then turning him away causing him to go back to his religious convictions. She falls asleep crying in her own bed, but when she wakes up Jack has followed her and he promises to love her as she reveals further details about her guilt.

== Inspiration ==
McEwan explains his inspiration in an essay he wrote for ''[[The Guardian]]'' which begins, <blockquote>"Some years ago I found myself at dinner with a handful of judges – a bench is the collective noun. They were talking shop, and I was politely resisting the urge to take notes... How easily, I thought at the time, this bench could be mistaken for a group of novelists discussing each other's work, reserving harsher strictures for those foolish enough to be absent. At one point, our host, [[Alan Ward (judge)|Sir Alan Ward]], an appeal court judge, wanting to settle some mild disagreement, got up and reached from a shelf a bound volume of his own judgments. An hour later, when we had left the table for coffee, that book lay open on my lap. It was the prose that struck me first. Clean, precise, delicious. Serious, of course, compassionate at points, but lurking within its intelligence was something like humour, or wit, derived perhaps from its godly distance, which in turn reminded me of a novelist's omniscience."<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/sep/05/ian-mcewan-law-versus-religious-belief Ian McEwan: the law versus religious belief], ''The Guardian'', Friday 5 September 2014.</ref><ref>[http://www.familylawweek.co.uk/site.aspx?i=ed132954 Sarah E Green, solicitor at TLT, reviews Ian McEwan’s latest novel which concerns a High Court judge in the Family Division] Retrieved 2015-03-30.</ref></blockquote>

== Reception ==
*''[[The Guardian]]'s'' [[Kate Kellaway]] believes this to be "the best novel he has written since ''On Chesil Beach''" and goes on to say, "He leads us in one direction, then points us in another. And what one especially prizes is this ability to turn on his heel, change everything within a sentence or a well-placed word. From the start of this masterly novel, there is a larger sense, as Fiona lies on her chaise longue, that an elegantly established equilibrium is about to be rocked" and concludes "He keeps us tensely guessing – everything hingeing on Fiona's decision about the boy. And it will not spoil the plot to say that this is a novel which, above all, considers what it might mean to be saved – and not in the sense in which Jehovah's witnesses have claimed the word."<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/sep/07/the-children-act-review-ian-mcewan-masterly ''The Children Act'' by Ian McEwan review – a masterly balance between research and imagination], ''The Guardian'', 7 Sep 2014. Retrieved 2015-03-30.</ref>
*Tessa Hadley, also writing in ''The Guardian'', enjoys the novel's presentation of "a succession of particular cases from the family division in all their fascinating detail, along with the legal precedents and the issues they raise." but complains that "the digressions make the flow of life in The Children Act feel oddly halting, and, although the plotting is intricate, there's nothing in the writing of Fiona's private life that is as interesting as the legal arguments...The problem is the novel's prose seems not so much to imitate the flow of Fiona's experience, as to offer a fairly pedestrian summary."<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/sep/11/the-children-act-ian-mcewan-review-novel ''The Children Act'' by Ian McEwan review – the intricate workings of institutionalised power] ''The Guardian'', 14 Sept 2014.Retrieved 2015-03-15.</ref>
*James Walton in ''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]'' criticizes the McEwan, concluding that, "By my reckoning, there are at least three highly implausible twists as he strives, with diminishing returns, to push ''The Children Act'' into a novel. None is justified either by his obvious desire to remind us of religion's annoying persistence, or by Fiona's childlessness, often a sign of human incompleteness in his work. The book still contains plenty of good, typically precise writing...Yet, in the end – especially given the choice of Jehovah's Witnesses as the chief target – the feeling persists that McEwan's considerable intellectual and literary firepower is here being used for little more than shooting fish in a barrel."<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/11061406/The-Children-Act-by-Ian-McEwan-review-diminishing-returns.html Ian McEwan’s novels are full of elegant insights. But does his latest take aim at too easy a target?], ''The Telegraph'', 3 Sep 2014. Retrieved 2015-03-30.</ref>
*Sam Leith in ''[[Literary Review]]'' writes "The writer's hand is always there: you're aware of McEwan's workmanlike crisscrossing of his themes – parenting, moral responsibility, the austerity of law and messiness of life, the moving power of art (the boy's poetry; Fiona's piano-playing) and so on. It never descends to being a thesis novel, but you're definitely conscious of McEwan moving the pieces around on the chessboard. Scene by scene, ''The Children Act'' is grounded and plausible. McEwan's prose has all the quiet mastery to which his readers have become accustomed. Fiona herself is completely realised, and the description of the fissure in her marriage entirely convincing and well developed. But Adam – at least to my mind – is less well rounded and the connection between the two sides of the story seems willed rather than organic. The whole assemblage still feels, by Ian McEwan's own highest standards, a little bit thin."<ref name=LR/>
*Cressida Connoelly in ''[[The Spectator]]'' was even more negative, with the strapline "Improbable, unconvincing and lazy – Ian McEwan's latest is unforgivable...The characterisation is scant and the writing poor, and he never gives religion a chance"<ref>[http://www.spectator.co.uk/books/9302892/the-children-act-by-ian-mcewan-review/ Improbable, unconvincing and lazy - Ian McEwan’s latest is unforgivable], ''The Spectator'', 6 Sep 2014. Retrieved 2015-03-30.</ref>
*Nick Romeo in ''[[The Daily Beast]]'' was also negative: "He seems to behold his characters more than inhabit them, and this creates a sterile distance, a sense of reading a summary of others' misfortune. Her case just feels like one of many, not fundamentally different than the ones she considers. The story is schematic and contrived rather than palpable and lived."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/ian-mcewans-new-novel-keeps-life-at-arms-length|title = Ian McEwan's New Novel Keeps Life at Arm's Length|newspaper = The Daily Beast|date = 11 September 2014|last1 = Romeo|first1 = Nick}}</ref>

==Film adaptation==
{{main|The Children Act (film)}}
A film adaptation of the novel was released in 2017. It is directed by [[Richard Eyre]] and stars [[Emma Thompson]] and [[Stanley Tucci]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Barraclough|first1=Leo|title=Emma Thompson, Stanley Tucci to Star in Ian McEwan's 'The Children Act'|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/global/emma-thompson-stanley-tucci-ian-mcewan-the-children-act-1201876108/|date=3 October 2016|work=Variety|accessdate=13 January 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Daniels|first1=Nia|title=Filming wraps on several features|url=http://www.theknowledgeonline.com/the-knowledge-bulletin/post/2016/12/08/filming-wraps-on-several-films|date=8 December 2016|work=The Knowledge|accessdate=13 January 2017}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Children Act 1989]] (legislation)
* [[Informed consent]]
* [[Sally Clark]] (real life victim of a tragic miscarriage of justice mentioned in the Chapter Two)

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.ianmcewan.com/books/childrenact.html ''The Children Act''] on Ian McEwan's official website.
* [http://www.randomhouse.co.uk/editions/the-childrens-act/9780224101998 ''The Children Act''] on publisher's official website (UK).
* [http://knopfdoubleday.com/book/246903/the-children-act/ ''The Children Act''] on publisher's official website (USA).
* [https://www.theguardian.com/books/audio/2014/sep/05/ian-mcewan-the-children-act-podcast Ian McEwan on The Children Act - books podcast]

{{Ian McEwan}}
{{Portal bar|Books|Literature}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Children Act, The}}
[[Category:2014 British novels]]
[[Category:British novels adapted into films]]
[[Category:Novels about law]]
[[Category:Novels set in courtrooms]]
[[Category:Jonathan Cape books]]
[[Category:Novels by Ian McEwan]]
[[Category:Novels set in London]]
[[Category:Jehovah's Witnesses]]