The Curious Garden
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4.7 • 9 Ratings
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
This New York Times bestselling modern classic explores the perennial topic of environmentalism in an urban world, from the creator of The Wild Robot and Mr. Tiger Goes Wild
One boy's quest for a greener world... one garden at a time.
While out exploring one day, a little boy named Liam discovers a struggling garden and decides to take care of it. As time passes, the garden spreads throughout the dark, gray city, transforming it into a lush, green world.
This is an enchanting tale with environmental themes and breathtaking illustrations that become more vibrant as the garden blooms. Red-headed Liam can also be spotted on every page, adding a clever seek-and-find element to this captivating picture book.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Brown's (Chowder) latest is a quiet but stirring fable of urban renewal, sure to capture imaginations. In exploring his bleak city neighborhood, thoughtful Liam in Brown's warm, almost fuzzy acrylic spreads, he looks a little like a friendly, redheaded wooden puppet notices that some flowering plants have appeared on an old elevated railway track. He teaches himself to care for them ("The flowers nearly drowned and he had a few pruning problems, but the plants patiently waited while Liam found better ways of gardening"), and the garden responds by "growing restless. It wanted to explore." In one of several wordless spreads, Liam stands against a bright blue sky, surrounded by a thick patch of daisies. Spring brings a burst of new energy: "the tough little weeds and mosses set out first. They popped up farther and farther from the railway.... but the most surprising things that popped up were the new gardeners." In Brown's utopian vision, the urban and the pastoral mingle to joyfully harmonious effect especially on the final pages, which show a city filled with rooftop gardens, fantastic topiaries, windmills and sparkling ponds. Ages 3 6.
