Customer Reviews

The Tiny Seed

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This book is a wonderful story about the life cycle of a seed. I used this book in my unit on plants for my 2nd grade class. It is a wonderful tool for a lesson on the beginning of a plant's life. Your students will love looking at the wonderful illustrations that reinforce the story. I highly recommend this piece of quality literature and all of Eric Carle's books for your child or classroom.

I think this book is fine, but not for the preschool crowd. I would use it with older children -- elementary age -- to discuss the life cycle of an annual, the role of the seasons, and the challenges of reproduction which must be overcome by all plants. The Tiny Seed introduces us to many of the hazards faced by seeds and seedlings as they attempt to grow (from falling in water and drowning, being eaten by birds or mice, being overshadowed by large weeds, being stepped on by children, and more) and shows how the ideal environment is a necessity. It covers the role of sunshine and rain, how the seed swells and bursts open, how the plant develops as it grows, and how it produces and disperses its seeds to carry on the next generation. It's not a book for small children, though, since its mostly non-fiction tone is dry, the phrases are stilted, and it doesn't read aloud well. I find it difficult to "cheer on" the tiny seed; where others see him as a hero facing difficult odds, I think the book is too grimly determined to be educational and becomes boring for the youngest child. If you want a book to introduce a unit on seed dispersal, this is the one. If you want to talk with your three year old about the cycle of the seasons, you'd be better off with the Spring/Summer/Autumn/Winter collection by Gerda Muller.

I am a big Eric Carle fan, and am stunned and saddened that he would put his name on this book.

1.) It does not portray the life cycle of a seed correctly at all. I would definitely not use this in the classroom, or as a tool to teach my child about seeds/plants. (Seeds don't catch on fire by flying too close to the sun, and flowers don't grow taller than houses in my neighborhood.) 2.) It is not good for pre-schoolers. Don't laugh, but it's too violent. All these seeds are killed off one by one -- frozen, burned, eaten, drowned. 3.) The lackluster illustrations are not up to the standard we expect from Eric Carle. 4.) Lastly, I'm not sure how more adequately I can describe this book than by just saying, "This is one really weird book."

It appears to have gotten some good reviews, so it might be a fit for some people out there. But, in my own opinion, it seems to me as though it was slapped together on a tight deadline, and with the thinking that by simply putting the Eric Carle name on it, people would buy it. (Unfortunate people like me.) Stick with the tried-and-true "Hungry Caterpillar" and "Brown Bear" classics if you want Eric Carle. And look elsewhere if you want a book that teaches kids about the life cycle of plants, like "This is the Sunflower" or "Bob and Otto."

This is a very good book. I think that this is a very inspiring story to people who might think they are too small and won't amount to anything. This is not true in this case, it just takes a little longer to develop. The others develop quckly, and they end up ending quickly to. When he keeps going on, and never really gives up. He sure thinks about giving up a lot but never really does. In the end it will work out better for the person who has to try hard to get through everything, something bad is bound to happen to you. When you tr and never give up, you will succeed. You will become bigger and better than anyone who got an east way through life.
Because you had to go through so much on your journey, when everyone else had it easy,when they have to strugge to get through things, you will get to sit back and relax.
And this story demonstrates that just because you are small you can't grow bigger or can't do things. ...

My son has been fascinated with this book. He understands so much more than I gave him credit for. He's only 2.5 years old, but he's EXTREMELY verbal and very bright when it comes to books. However, I agree with the english teacher/mommy that it is NOT for the average toddler. I think a bright preschooler or for the child who is fascinated with plants and flowers, it is quite appropriate. I can see an OLDER child in first, second or third grade getting more out of it science wise, but that doesn't mean that a toddler can't enjoy it. I remember reading books and understanding more and more of the details as I got older, which made it a "new" book for me with each passing year, if that makes sense. I re-discovered the story or read it in a new way with more life experience with which to process it. So with that in mind, I think it's a terrific book overall. I do not find it at all disturbing that a seed should drown or burn up. It's a fact of life that seeds don't all survive. If you think of it in terms of humans, sure it's disturbing, but I think that's a paralell that cannot and will not be drawn by a toddler, preschooler or even a young elementary school child. In my view, the English teacher is reading too much into that and reading the book from the viewpoint of an adult with a whole lot more life experience. HOWEVER, I totally agree that the book ends abruptly, which is why I add my own ending when I read it to my child which goes something like this, "and off the seeds sail in the wind to hopefully become beautiful plants and flowers NEXT spring. The end." I'm kind of surprised nobody told Eric Carle or his publisher that the ending was too abrupt. But it's not a big deal. Eric Carle's biggest hits with my son have been "Head to Toe", "The Very Hungry Catepillar," and "Brown Bear, Brown Bear," as well as this title. The rest have been a flop. Luckily we check them out at the library and do a test run on them first. :)

The tiny seed is about a small seed who starts with other seeds on a journey from a flower to it's very own spot. The story tells of how the seed moves and why it can't land in different places. The story also tells about the other plants by it and how it is so small and can't be seen therfore it will not be killed by different things,animals,people,and so forth. Now the tiny seed stands taller than trees it is finally bigger than the rest and get some recognition. This book finds ways to make learning fun.

My 2 year old grand-daughter loves this book. I don't necessarily read all the words but we look at the pictures and discuss it. It is one of her favorites.

This book tells the story of a group of flower seeds, blowing into the air in Autumn, with one tiny seed among them. As they journey through many dangerous places, different seeds succumb to death before finding a place to take root: one flies too close to the sun and is burned up, one lands on an icy mountain too cold to germinate it; another lands in the ocean, and so on, but the tiny seed moves on with the remaining seeds. As they begin to fall to the fertile earth, a bird eats one. During the winter a mouse eats another, but still the tiny seed survives. Another seed, on sprouting, is stunted by the proximity a great weed, and another is picked by a child just when it blooms. Finally only the smallest seed is left, and it sprouts to become the greatest of flowers, which lives through the summer and sheds its own seeds in Autumn.

Readers who have experienced The Carrot Seed in their early reading will anticipate the future of this tiny seed, against all the obstacles arrayed against it. And families that have heard Jesus' Parable of the Seeds will recognize in this book a full-fledged dramatization of the same principle Jesus illustrated. In this story children will learn about the life cycle of a flower, see the least of a family become the greatest of flowers, and will experience Carl's distinctively beautiful collage-style of art. This is a wonderful book on every level.

I understand the power of overcoming adversity, but as the seeds travel, one of the "drowns," one dies in the desert, one is eaten by a bird...I think it is a disturbing little book, actually. It certainly should never have been made into a board book. There are too many words on the page to keep the attention of a toddler or preschooler. The ending seems abrupt as well. I haven't been impressed with the Carle books I have read.

I purchased this book and sadly returned it. The hardcover is tiny and printed on thin paper. Do not recommend to anyone with kids under 5.