Up, Down, and Around [Hardcover]

Katherine Ayres (Author), Nadine Bernard Westcott (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 13, 2007 | Age Level: 2 and up

This garden is on the move! A good-time, rollicking celebration of things that grow.

PEPPERS GROW UP.
POTATOES GROW DOWN.
PUMPKINS VINE AROUND AND AROUND.

From seeds dropping into soil to corn bursting from its stalks, from children chasing butterflies to ants burrowing underground, everything in this vibrant picture book pulses with life — in all directions! Sprightly illustrations set the mood for a rhythmic text that follows nature’s course to a final feast of backyard bounty.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1–This cheerful story is a pleasant introduction to planting and prepositions. When two children help plant a garden, they learn that some vegetables grow underground, some shoot up above it, and some grow on vines that twine around and around. And they all end up as lunch. The rhyming text is simple, but the words are well chosen. The colorful cartoon illustrations are humorous and lively, with lots of motion to keep readers turning the pages. Children will enjoy finding various insects on each page and talking about the roles they play in a garden. A good choice for introducing how things grow.–Mary Hazelton, Elementary Schools in Warren & Waldoboro, ME
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Setting aside the notion of gardens as places of tranquility, this picture book depicts a bustling kitchen garden. Two children help a man with planting, watering, and harvesting vegetables, while a dog, a cat, and a rabbit observe the fun. All around them, snails, caterpillars, birds, bugs, and worms creep, crawl, fly, climb, dig, and generally cavort about this flourishing garden. The ink-and-watercolor illustrations offer plenty of details for children to explore. Cutaway views show small critters nestled in their underground homes between root vegetables. As noted in the title, a repeated theme in the rhymed couplets is the direction plants grow: "Broccoli grows up. / Beets grow down. / Green beans climb / around and around." The short verses create a quick pace and an upbeat tempo throughout. Pair this with Janet Stevens' Tops and Bottoms (1995) for a lively story hour or classroom unit on gardens. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 2 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (March 13, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763623784
• ISBN-13: 978-0763623784
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 0.3 x 10.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #451,216 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vegetable awareness, organic gardening, vegetarian fun!, June 4, 2007

By 

Book Lovin' Mom - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Up, Down, and Around (Hardcover)

This book is great in so many ways. My 15 mo. old loves it because it has a fun rhythm to it and because he hunts for little things on each page (the kitty, the dog, the butterflies, the vegetables). I like it because it shows kids how plants grow "Corn grows up. Carrots grow down. Cucumbers climb around and around. Peppers grow up. Potatoes grow down. Pumpkins vine around and around...." I also like that the children are gardening with their dad, and that this is (apparently) an organic garden...happy bugs, butterflies, worms, and birds are shown ALL over the plants (in a cute way, and a real way...not a gross way). At the end the family harvests their veggies and creates a veggie stew. Fabulous, positive book...makes natural gardening look fun, and kids learn about plants, too!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love it!, May 16, 2007

By 

L. Horning "Momma 2-3" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Up, Down, and Around (Hardcover)

My children(ages 3&4) love this book! We read it before we planted our garden this year and they got much more involved and can't wait to try their vegetables! Vivid colors and simple words make this book enjoyable and easy to understand.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My baby LOVES this!, September 5, 2008

By 

Melissa Mullan "pa mom" (Seven Valleys, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Up, Down, and Around (Paperback)

My son is addicted to this book. He received it from his daycare mom at Christmastime when he was 4 months old. Needless to say as soon as he could crawl he would go over to this book--only this book (he has a HUGE library) and flip through the pages. He is happy to have Daddy or Mommy read it to him or just to look at the book himself. Now 9 months later I have to buy him a new copy due to wear and tear!