Gardens Are for Growing

Chelsea Tornetto is a world geography teacher in Jackson, Missouri, and is the author of Conquering Content Vocabulary (Scholastic 2018). While she is a terrible gardener, her husband, Mike, has a green thumb, and she’s blessed to be able to watch him raise vegetables—and their two children—in their backyard garden all summer long.

The heartwarming relationship between a father and daughter blossoms and grows alongside the garden they tend together. From planting the seeds to pulling the weeds and every task in between, readers see the garden transform, the little girl grow up, and the father age as the seasons change. Tornetto’s poetic, rhythmic text perfectly complements Pang’s soft, yet lively illustrations. While the text speaks of the care and growth of the garden itself, the accompanying art reflects the same changes and stages of growth in childhood, as the young girl is shown as a “sprout” in the beginning who eventually develops into a mature, capable young lady because of the loving care and attention of her doting father. The story comes full circle when the daughter returns to the garden of her youth with her own child in tow, demonstrating the never-ending circle of life and the enduring power of family, support, and love.—Children's Literature