Draft:The Wind's Garden

The Wind's Garden
AuthorBethany Roberts
IllustratorMelanie Hope Greenberg
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreChildren's fiction
PublishedApril 2001[1]
PublisherHenry Holt & Company[2]
Pages32[3] (unpaged)[2]
ISBN0-8050-6367-6

The Wind's Garden is a 2001 book by children's author Bethany Roberts, with illustrations by Melanie Hope Greenberg. Depicting a girl's observations between both her field and the titular garden, it was inspired by Roberts' real-life experiences and received positive reviews.

Synopsis edit

While working in her garden, a girl observes changes in the titular "wind's garden" next to her.[2] She cultivates her field in an organized manner, while the wind opts for a method involving rain, nature, and arbitrary patterns, free of human intervention.[4]: 154  The book is written in the first person,[3] features gouache illustrations,[1][2][3] and ends with tips on garden cultivation by author Bethany Roberts.[1][5]

Development edit

Roberts' experiences in gardening, and "her thoughts [on] how nature would tend [her field] in her place", prompted her to write The Wind's Garden.[4]

Reception edit

The Wind's Garden received positive reviews. Writing for the School Library Journal, Carolyn Jenks said: "The flat, stylized [art is] colorful and cheery; however, the pictures of the field look a bit too cultivated for a wild garden. Still, this book is a fine inspiration for discussing the role of people in natural spaces."[2] Booklist's Carolyn Phelan said, "Roberts makes [the gardening process] sound mighty appealing. But the real excitement comes in the illustrations: all the waiting pays off in the riot of colorful flowers on the final pages.... A good book for reading aloud."[3] Publishers Weekly called it "a cheery picture book.... Like the gardens themselves, Greenberg's vibrant folk-art style [work bursts] with life, from the swooping curlicues used to indicate the wind to the zinnia-bright colors of the flowers and surrounding yard."[1] Nicholas A. Basbanes called The Wind's Garden an "engaging tribute to the many wonders of nature... From seedling to blooming flowers, [the] busy paintings illustrate the beauty of a cultivated garden, and one fashioned by nature."[6] Kirkus Reviews opined that Greenberg's art could encourage its target audience to take up gardening.[5]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Roback, Diane; Brown, Jennifer M; Britton, Jason (March 12, 2001). "Review: 'The Wind's Garden'". Publishers Weekly. Vol. 248, no. 11. p. 89. ISSN 0000-0019. Retrieved July 8, 2023 – via ProQuest.
  2. ^ a b c d e Jenks, Carolyn (May 2001). "Review: 'The Wind's Garden'". School Library Journal. Vol. 47, no. 5. p. 132. ISSN 0362-8930. Retrieved July 8, 2023 – via ProQuest.
  3. ^ a b c d Phelan, Carolyn (June 1–15, 2004). "Review: 'The Wind's Garden'". Booklist. Vol. 97, no. 19/20. p. 1895. ISSN 0006-7385. Retrieved July 8, 2023 – via ProQuest.
  4. ^ a b Kumar, Lisa, ed. (2010). "Roberts, Bethany 1949–". Something About the Author. Vol. 202. Gale Research. pp. 153–154. ISBN 978-1-4144-3499-5. Retrieved July 8, 2023 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ a b "Review: 'The Wind's Garden'". Kirkus Reviews. No. 5. March 1, 2003. ISSN 1948-7428. ProQuest 917077787. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  6. ^ Basbanes, Nicholas A. (May 13, 2001). "What comes naturally...: Nature's way". Orlando Sentinel. p. F4. Retrieved July 8, 2023 – via ProQuest.