Tuesday, September 22, 2009

The Curious Garden by Peter Brown, as reviewed by Freaky

I will happily admit to being biased toward this book from the beginning. I am a big fan of any book that advocates greening things up. As a turtle, I enjoy a nice rock in the hot sun as much as the next guy, but then I want to go swimming and hide in some greenery, know what I mean? Living in southern New Mexico it drives me absolutely CRAZY when people plant rocks because they are too lazy to water their grass. Don't they know that just makes everything hotter???

Rant and bias aside, this is an absolutely delightful book, based at least partly on real life. A little boy named Liam discovers a few tiny plants struggling to survive on an abandoned railway, in a dark, dismal city. He decides to help the plants in their quest for survival, and things literally blossom from there. Kids will enjoy tracing the path of the railway through the town, and comparing before and after scenes. Hopefully, the fantastic illustrations will also inspire kids (and their grown-ups) to find a spot they can green up themselves. Very much recommended for any bookshelf!



For a similar book, and another of my favorites, try:

2 comments:

  1. On Meadowview Street is one of my favorites too! I'm so happy that Henry Cole is the illustrator for our summer reading program next year!

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  2. Ooh, we hadn't heard that yet - can't wait to see the t-shirts (although they never make them in our size!) Time to check the shelves and see if we are missing any of his books.

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