• Age: 3 to 7
• Grade: p to 2
• Reading age: 3 to 7

This delightfully rhythmic story follows two children as they grow a garden from seeds.

Author and poet JaNay Brown-Wood's cumulative tale, similar to “The House That Jack Built,” starts promisingly: “Here are the seeds that we will sow to help our garden grow.” But as time passes, the children quickly learn that things rarely go as planned in the garden. Plants will droop without enough sun and wilt without enough water. Suddenly, “OH NO!” becomes the children's repeated refrain. Eventually, the pair come to see that nature itself provides everything a magnificent garden needs to flourish!

This engaging read-aloud doubles as a child-friendly lesson on what plants need in order to grow. Olivia Amoah's vivid artwork brings the story to life, particularly on the spreads featuring the refrain (“OH NO!”), where readers can look at the illustrations to try to figure out what went wrong in the garden. The story covers the key elements of what makes a healthy garden, such as soil, sun, bugs, water, mushrooms and worms - and shows how balance is necessary for plants to survive. The back matter includes brief explanations of each of these key elements. This picture book offers excellent life science curriculum connections to the needs of living things, growth and changes in plants and plant life cycles.

JaNay Brown-Wood is an award-winning author, poet, educator and scholar. She is the author of Imani's Moon, Amara's Farm and Miguel's Community Garden, among other books for young readers. JaNay is a professor of early childhood education at California State University. She lives with her family near Sacramento, California.

JaNay Brown-Wood's profile page

Olivia Amoah is a children's book illustrator with a background in animation. She is the illustrator of Vanessa Nakate, written by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara (Little People, BIG DREAMS series). Through her art, Olivia aims to create humorous stories that serve as a connection to her African heritage. She lives with her dog, Penny, in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Olivia Amoah's profile page

... a preschooler-friendly spring tale. An enticing seasonal read-aloud.

Kirkus Reviews

The charming and brightly coloured illustrations help bring the story to life and would appeal to any young child ... a welcome addition to any library catering to young children.

l'Association des bibliothécaires du Québec - Quebec Library Association

A wonderful book for both home and school libraries.

Children's Literature