Beautiful [Hardcover]

Jim Fowler (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up

Uncle George is a gardener and he shares his talent with his young nephew. George is very sick and must go far away for treatment. When he returns he has all but lo st his battle for life, but the gift he gave his nephew has begun to unfurl. '

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A gift from an uncle to his nephew blossoms into a deeper bond in this quiet and subtle picture book from the creators of I'll See You When the Moon Is Full. Uncle George is a gardener who "makes dark places bright and turns ordinary places into something wonderful." But Uncle George is unwell and must go away for special treatment. For his nephew's birthday, the man gives him all he needs to start his own garden and to assuage the boy's loneliness, saying, "Maybe you won't feel I'm so far away." The boy faithfully cares for his garden, and exchanges postcards and phone calls with his uncle about his seedlings' progress. When Uncle George comes home to spend his final days, he's too weak to go outside, so his nephew brings the garden to him, in the shape of a colorful bouquet. Susi Gregg Fowler's poignant depiction of the bond between nephew and uncle unfolds through the boy's perspective and primarily through dialogue, keeping the emotions immediate for readers. While the characters in Jim Fowler's acrylic portraits come off stiffly, he makes excellent use of light and shadow and successfully evokes the colors and atmosphere of those early spring days. Together, author and artist effectively chart both the glorious promise of the garden as well as the deeper themes of love and loss. Ages 4-up.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3ABurgeoning life and imminent death are contrasted in this moving story about Uncle George, who is terminally ill, and his young nephew. The boy describes how his uncle gives him a birthday present of gardening tools and explains how to plant and nurture seeds. Then the man leaves for the hospital. The green shoots finally appear, then bud, and then bloom, just as Uncle George returns to spend his final days at home. When his nephew brings him a freshly picked bouquet, he shares the joy of the flowers' beauty and knows that after his death the garden will be a lasting link between them. Luminous, soft, acrylic paintings, both full-page and vignette, have a subdued, reflective quality that complements the straightforward, yet sensitive text. The reality of the situation is not downplayed, as the changes in Uncle George's physical appearance are marked and the likelihood of his survival remote, but the overall feeling of love and renewed life in nature gives the story a poignant, positive message.APatricia Pearl Dole, formerly at First Presbyterian School, Martinsville, VA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow; 1st edition (May 29, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688151116
• ISBN-13: 978-0688151119
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,945,655 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Beautiful" will restore your sense of joy and hope., August 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Beautiful (Library Binding)

Susie Gregg Fowler and her husband, Jim Fowler, create sanctuaries of compassion and beauty in their books. This is a story of a child whose love for his uncle is honored so honestly by his family that even in the uncle's illness and death there is room for joy, for beauty, for hope, for celebration of all that endures in the human soul. The story and pictures never fall off into sentimentality or glibness; every beautifully chosen word of the story, every illustration of the family and of the garden, carries one gently into the story of a family coming to terms with love and loss and the real work that must be done for a family to stay whole.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Moving Book about Living and Dying Well, November 10, 2010

By 

Shanna A. Gonzalez "eyelevelbooks.com" (Gaithersburg, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beautiful (Hardcover)

As a birthday present, Uncle George gives his nephew a gift of seeds and teaches the boy to plant and care for them. He is going away because of his sickness, but he expects to enjoy the flowers when he returns. "Now you take care of the seeds and wait for glory," he says. The boy waters and cares for the seeds, telephones when they shoot up, and waits eagerly for his uncle's return. When Uncle George comes home, he is very changed, and the doctors say they can do nothing more for him. But the boy regales him with details about the flowers about to bloom, and Uncle George whispers, "Ready for glory."

Uncle George moves into his uncle's room, and a few days later the boy visits the garden to find that his flowers have bloomed. He eagerly gathers an armful and presents them at his uncle's bedside. "Beautiful," his uncle responds. The story ends with a snapshot of two faces together, Uncle George holding the flowers, with two grins mirroring one another across the bouquet.

In this moving, thoughtful story, Fowler uses the flowers to commemorate the diligence and artistry of a much-beloved man who finishes his life with dignity, in the care of a loving family. Uncle George's craft brings goodness to the world, and he passes on his skills to his nephew, who in turn uses them to brighten his last days. The text is well-written, augmented by Jim Fowler's evocative pictures: the scrawled postcard from Uncle George on the fridge next to the shopping list, the tired grief on Mother's face as she explains that Uncle George cannot eat solid food, and the brightly beautiful flowers that balance the story's sadness with love.

Christian families, who look forward to eternal life will find this story especially meaningful. Adults can explain that Uncle George's life, bringing beauty to everyone he loves, will be continued in Heaven where sickness cannot touch him -- that just as the flowers' glory increase when they bloom, his life also comes into its fullness at the point of his death. This story may also help young children work through their feelings of grief at the loss of people who are dear to them. This is a serious book, but a satisfying one that is just right for an elementary audience.