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Summary
Summary
"When hungry Little Groundhog tries to eat some vegetables out of Squirrel's garden, kind Squirrel takes him under his proverbial wing and shows him how to plant his own veggies...This charming story teaches children about the interplay among all living things, and the good feeling that comes with community participation and sharing." - School Library Journal
Author Notes
Children's book illustrator and author Lynne Cherry was born on January 5, 1952, and grew up in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Encouraged by her parents at an early age to use her creative mind, Cherry wrote a book called Kitty's Adventures when she was just ten years old. As an adult Cherry reillustrated the book, while still keeping the original story, and published it as Archie, Follow Me.
Cherry earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Tyler School of Art in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, in 1973. After graduating college, Cherry held a succession of jobs, including serving as artist-in-residence at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Maryland, acting as an historical consultant, organizing teacher-training conferences with The Center for Children's Environmental Literature, and doing illustrations for the Java History Trail Project.
In 1986, Cherry went to Yale University to get her Master of Arts degree in history, in part so that she could successfully write a children's book about the environment. The finished book, which Cherry entitled A River Ran Wild, was named a Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies and a Children's Choice Book by a CBC/International Reading Association committee. Cherry's book, The Snail's Spell, was awarded the 1983 New York Academy of Sciences Children's Book Science Award, and her book The Great Kapok Tree was named an Outstanding Science Trade Book by the Children's Book Council and the National Science Teachers Association.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Fact and fiction make fruitful partners in Cherry's (The Great Kapok Tree) cheerful account of a young groundhog's successful efforts to plant a vegetable garden. After Squirrel scolds Little Groundhog for feasting on the bounty of others' gardens, the fellow apologizes and admits he doesn't know how to plant his own. Squirrel willingly becomes his mentor, sharing her ample horticultural knowledge as she offers a chatty guide to planning, planting, tending, transplanting and harvesting a garden. Cherry's detailed, impressively precise renderings of the garden's offerings (traced from seeds, through seedlings to final product) and of the woodland animals who lend a gardening hand should easily snare the attention of aspiring green-thumbers; marginalia appear as detailed as scientific notebook sketches, artfully arranged in borders around the main action. The author interjects environmental messages, as when Wren and Praying Mantis strike a deal with Little Groundhog: "If you promise not to harm us with bug spray, we birds and insects will help you with your garden. We will eat the harmful insects that hurt your plants." Youngsters may well find this fledgling gardener's exuberance infectious ("It's beautiful! Scrumptious! Irresistible!" he exclaims as he prepares to share his homegrown food with his friends). If not tempted to grab a hoe, readers are at least likely to view the vegetables on their dinner plates with greater appreciation. Ages 4-up. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Little Groundhog happily munches on tasty vegetables, but the animal-gardeners scold him for eating their food and teach him to plant and tend his own crop. Cherry's illustrations of both the small backyard critters and the garden at various stages are sharply detailed and appealing, and may help attune children's eyes to the natural world. From HORN BOOK Fall 2003, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
PreS^-Gr. 3. Little Groundhog loves eating from the neighbor's vegetable garden--maybe too much. Perhaps it's time he planted his own garden and, fortunately, Squirrel is willing to show him how. The two animals collect seeds, store them, and after winter hibernation and spring thaw, plant and tend them. By summer, Little Groundhog is joyfully harvesting and eating what they sowed. And such a plentiful harvest calls for sharing, bringing a wonderful Thanksgiving feast for all to enjoy. In simple, descriptive language, Cherry, author of The Great Kapok Tree (1990), tells a charming and also informative story about plants, gardening, and environmental respect. Her beautiful, full-color illustrations--realistic and wonderfully detailed--often incorporate spot-art borders of labeled seedlings and plants, highlighting a diverse array of wildlife. In an author's note, Cherry describes her own gardening experiences and suggests a few resources for information. Little Groundhog is an endearing character whose awe in the miracle of growth is irresistible; by the close of the story, he has learned the rewards and joy of gardening, as well as the pleasures of friendship and giving. --Shelle Rosenfeld
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-An entertaining, creative story that's loaded with information. When hungry Little Groundhog tries to eat some vegetables out of Squirrel's garden, kind Squirrel takes him under his proverbial wing and shows him how to plant his own veggies to share with the entire animal community. Cherry intertwines the facts and vocabulary of gardening into a believable plot that will keep children reading, and her illustrations are well planned to combine with the text in an unusual way. Expansive spreads showing the animals tending their plots alternate with smaller, framed art. These smaller pictures are surrounded by clearly labeled pictures of various plants at different stages and other related objects. The detailed art continues on the endpapers, where readers can trace the growing cycle of many vegetables. This charming story teaches children about the interplay among all living things, and the good feeling that comes with community participation and sharing.-Susan Marie Pitard, formerly at Weezie Library for Children, Nantucket Atheneum, MA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Good intentions crash and burn when the ill winds of pedantry overwhelm this story of a garden's year. Here is Little Groundhog doing what groundhogs were born to do: seek and destroy gardens. Along comes Squirrel, looking to turn Nature on its ear with admonition and instruction. " 'Little Groundhog!' Squirrel scolded. 'This garden does not belong to you. . . . Why don't you plant your OWN garden?' 'I'm sorry,' Little Groundhog told her, embarrassed, 'but I don't know how.' 'Well, then,' replied Squirrel, 'I will show you.' " And he does, teaching elementary gardening as he goes. While there is no denying the elegance of Cherry's illustrations-some full-bleed, others bordered by the subjects of the page, all peopled with winsome creatures-the text is a relentless machine that force-feeds its message, something like what a duck must experience getting the foie gras treatment. "First, you will need seeds." "First, we need to dig in the soil to loosen it up." "First, we'll need to cut them into little pieces with 2 sprouts each." Sensible comments are made regarding organic gardening, the big difference in flavor between garden fresh vegetables and the store-bought variety, and the pleasure of the harvest, though this last, too, can feel strained: "Little Groundhog cried jubilantly." "Little Groundhog rejoiced!" Maybe it's all best summed up in Cherry's footnote: "But it's not magic-it's science; it's life." Banishing magic from the garden-there's an idea whose time should never come. (author's note) (Picture book. 4-7)
