Juanita Havill – författare

Jamaica was friends with everyone in school - except for Russell. No wonder: Russell was a mean brat. When they had art class, Russell borrowed her markers and spoiled her picture. At recess, he threw sand and chased little kids. Jamaica certainly wasn't sorry to learn that Russell was going to move away. She didn't even want to make a card for him, the way the others in her class were doing. But then something happened to change her mind . . .

This verse novel about the creation of a community garden reveals the extraordinary magic that occurs when ordinary people work together.Everything about Berneetha is big—especially her dreams. And when Berneetha decides to create a garden on a vacant lot, twelve-year-old Kate Sibley just has to help make that dream a reality. At first the neighbors think Kate and Berneetha are crazy, but slowly a community begins to grow, much like the plants do.But just as the garden and Kate are both beginning to bloom, a sign goes up: a parking garage will be built on the lot. Can Kate and Berneetha and their friends keep the garden and the dream alive?Award-winning author Juanita Havill's story of a community garden in an urban neighborhood is told through the eyes of an impressionable girl in a series of richly detailed prose poems. The result is an affecting, lasting portrait of community life and the power of shared commitment and hope.