Harvest [Hardcover]

Kris Waldherr (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up

A young girl and her mother look forward to harvest day when they can gather in all the wonderful vegetables, herbs, and fruit that their garden has produced. All year they have worked hard, and the garden has too, nurturing this bounty of food and flowers. On a beautiful fall day, they collect, taste, and preserve the garden's treasures for the coming winter.

This lyrical picture book, lushly illustrated in the vibrant oranges, browns, and greens of the season, is sure to please as it captures the magic and warmth of autumn. A charming book to usher in the Halloween and Thanksgiving holidays.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

reS-Gr 2-This beautiful, earthy book is a child's hymn to harvest time. A young girl celebrates it all in one day, and thinks back on the efforts of both the gardeners and the plants. She picks, digs, and gathers fruit, vegetables, herbs, and flowers with great care and appreciation; then she and her mother bake, store, and can, getting ready for winter. The watercolor-and-gouache paintings, mostly double-page spreads, are rich in autumn colors. Each picture is framed by a border that echoes some of the plants within; these appear as if behind a scrim, reminding readers that the colors will fade and the plants will die down as the circle of seasons continues. The last painting shows the narrator asleep in her cozy bed as snowflakes fall outside; her cat, who has appeared in nearly every picture as a quiet helper, is also asleep. A bouquet of dried flowers and a pail of small pumpkins decorate the room. Under the scene is the last bit of text: "We have harvested our garden. All year we have worked so hard. All year our garden has worked so hard. Now it is time to rest."-Carolyn Jenks, First Parish Unitarian Church, Portland, ME

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 4-6. On a golden fall day, a girl and her mother harvest the fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers from their garden, then dry and can some of the produce for future use. That night a harvest moon, "as round and rusty as a pumpkin," rises as the child snuggles into bed and reflects on their hard work in the garden. This beautifully designed book features detailed watercolor-and-gouache paintings in rich fall colors. A muted border of flowers surrounds each picture or box of text. The directness and simplicity of the text and illustrations make this a fine choice for fall story hours. An attractive alternative to books about Thanksgiving, which place the holiday so firmly in the past or at the dinner table. This gets to the essence of the harvest in a story even young children can understand. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Walker & Company (August 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802787924
• ISBN-13: 978-0802787927
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 8.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,458,278 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kris Waldherr is an author, illustrator, and designer whose art has been exhibited in the National Museum of Women in the Arts. She is the author of Doomed Queens, The Lover's Path and The Book of Goddesses, and creator of The Goddess Tarot. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Bountiful Book, September 27, 2002

By 

Terrie (Little Chute, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Harvest (Hardcover)

This is an exquisite book and I am amazed that I am the first person to review it. I hope this will encourage people to buy it because it is too lovely to be missed. The talented Kris Waldheer has maintained her history of excellence in the beautiful seasonal illustrations and in the simple but atmospheric text. It is a short story, almost like a thanksgiving ode that takes place over the course of a day in autumn when a little girl and her mother harvest the garden they have been tending all summer. They work together to can and bake and hang flowers and herbs for drying. She reflects over the careful work they did from seed packet to canning jar. Herbs, fruits, vegetables and flowers overflow from the bountiful illustrations and offer a sweet nostalgic feeling that is perfect storytime fare for the autumn months. There is a subtle feeling of the changing of the seasons and a comforting feeling of the natural cycle of Nature. This is a book that opens the world of the quiet thrills of garden and kitchen and introduces it to children in such an inviting way that it could very well help create a life-long appreciation for gardening, home crafts and Nature that will serve them in so many ways. Don't miss it. It is a quiet little gem with excellent values.

5.0 out of 5 stars Harvest, January 28, 2011

By 

C. argyros "Madam LaFura" (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Harvest (Library Binding)

What a delightful story of a girl and her garden. It is a story for children but one perfect for autumn days. Beautifully illustrated and poetically written it leaves you moved. I purchased a second hand book as its no longer in print, but with fast approaching lammas it was worth it (we're based in the southern hemisphere). Its simple story is perfect in putting across the joy of growing your own food from seed. She also pays special mention to the harvest moon, simply enchanting.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Bountiful Review for Harvest, November 2, 2008

By 

Bride-to-Be "Toni" (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Harvest (Hardcover)

This book is a wonderful story about a young girl and her garden. She shares the hard work that it took to grow a magnificent and bountiful garden. She tells the story as she harvests the fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers. At the end the mother and daughter store the harvested produce for use later that year. Now that all the hard work has been finished, everyone can rest, including the garden. The pictures in the book are elaborately colorful and have a lot of details, such as the cat making it onto every page the girl is on. I believe this book to be an asset to the classroom that should be shared with students right before Thanksgiving Break.