From School Library Journal
Grade 1-4-Through a series of poems with garden themes, Spinelli details a year in the life of a loving, extended family. The book opens with a tree planting in honor of the birth of the narrator's sibling ("Oh, my baby brother,/even the garden spiders/spin you a welcome/on their sun-dotted webs") and concludes as the girl stands in the spring rain ("Here, in my backyard garden/memories twinkle like stars./I can easily/fill my pockets with them"). In between are poems describing family picnics, quarrels, and celebrations. The tone is quiet, and some poems speak to adult sensibilities-a spread of Granddad staking tomatoes features an annoyed grandmother and a selection entitled, "Granddad Makes Use of the Handkerchief Wayne Newton Tossed to Grandmother in 1998 and Almost Ends up in Divorce Court." Still, the verses are filled with the warmth of close family ties. When the girl's father finds a job, everyone rejoices, "I want to hug/the fading/golden light./I do not want/this perfect day/to end." Ramsey's watercolor and oil-pastel paintings bring the characters to life and depict the changing colors of the seasons. This offering will encourage readers to savor and celebrate the wonders to be found in their own backyards.-Kathleen Whalin, York Public Library, ME
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Gr. 2-5. A wide, sunny backyard garden is the setting for this collection of poems about a family's squabbles and joys. In a straightforward, casual voice, a young girl describes simple family scenes--planting a tree, enjoying a picnic, watching Mom trim Dad's hair--that hint at more significant events: the tree-planting is to celebrate the birth of the girl's baby brother, there are romances and family fights at the picnic, and Mom is playing barber "to save money" after Dad loses his job. In these everyday moments, Spinelli contrasts the rhythms of family life and the seasons in spare words and a mostly conversational tone that doesn't always sound like a young girl's voice. But the poems sing with appealing sounds and rhythms, and together with Ramsey's expressive, clear line drawings of family, pets, and plants, they have the approachable, intimate effect of a family album. Teachers can share this collection with students, who will appreciate how everyday subjects and familiar family moments can make fine poems. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
