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Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul, 101 Stories to Sow Seeds of Love, Hope and Laughter
For beginning gardeners and veteran green-thumbs-this uplifting collection of stories is filled with what every gardener knows-gardens fill lives with a special richness because they are a living reminder of the beauty in the world. Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul celebrates all the magic of gardening-the feeling of satisfaction that comes from creating something from nothing; the physical and spiritual renewal the earth provides; and the special moments shared with friends and family only nature can bestow. Written by hobbyists and celebrity gardeners, the stories relate the joys and challenges of gardening, with chapters on Blossoming Friendships, The Family Tree, Love in Bloom, The Seasons of Life, Overcoming Obstacles and Potpourri.
381 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
17 people are currently reading
260 people want to read
About the author
Jack Canfield
1,286 books1,749 followersJack Canfield is an American motivational speaker and author. He is best known as the co-creator of the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" book series, which currently has over 124 titles and 100 million copies in print in over 47 languages. According to USA Today, Canfield and his writing partner, Mark Victor Hansen, were the top-selling authors in the United States in 1997.
Canfield received a BA in Chinese History from Harvard University and a Masters from University of Massachusetts. He has worked as a teacher, a workshop facilitator, and a psychotherapist.
Canfield is the founder of "Self Esteem Seminars" in Santa Barbara, and "The Foundation for Self Esteem" in Culver City, California. The stated mission of Self Esteem Seminars is to train entrepreneurs, educators, corporate leaders and employees to achieve their personal and professional goals. The focus of The Foundation for Self Esteem is to train social workers, welfare recipients and human resource professionals.
In 1990,he shared with author Mark Victor Hansen his idea for the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. After three years, the two had compiled sixty-eight stories.
Canfield has appeared on numerous television shows, including Good Morning America, 20/20, Eye to Eye, CNN's Talk Back Live, PBS, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Montel Williams Show, Larry King Live and the BBC.
Canfield's most recent book, The Success Principles (2005), shares 64 principles that he claims can make people more successful. In 2006, he appeared in the DVD, "The Secret," and shared his insights on the Law of Attraction and tips for achieving success in personal and professional life.
Jack Canfield was born on August 19, 1944, in Fort Worth, TX. He is the son of Elmer and Ellen (a homemaker; maiden name, Taylor). He attended high school at Linsly Military Institute, Wheeling, WV, 1962. He went to college at Harvard University, B.A., 1966; University of Massachusetts at Amherst, M.Ed., 1973. Canfield married Judith Ohlbaum in 1971 (divorced, November 1976); he married Georgia Lee Noble on September 9, 1978 (divorced, December 1999); he married Inga Marie Mahoney on July 4, 2001; children: (first marriage) Oran, David, Kyle, Dania; (second marriage) Christopher Noble. He is a Democrat and a Christian, and his hobbies include tennis, travel, skiing, running, billiards, reading, and guitar.
Canfield received a BA in Chinese History from Harvard University and a Masters from University of Massachusetts. He has worked as a teacher, a workshop facilitator, and a psychotherapist.
Canfield is the founder of "Self Esteem Seminars" in Santa Barbara, and "The Foundation for Self Esteem" in Culver City, California. The stated mission of Self Esteem Seminars is to train entrepreneurs, educators, corporate leaders and employees to achieve their personal and professional goals. The focus of The Foundation for Self Esteem is to train social workers, welfare recipients and human resource professionals.
In 1990,he shared with author Mark Victor Hansen his idea for the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. After three years, the two had compiled sixty-eight stories.
Canfield has appeared on numerous television shows, including Good Morning America, 20/20, Eye to Eye, CNN's Talk Back Live, PBS, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Montel Williams Show, Larry King Live and the BBC.
Canfield's most recent book, The Success Principles (2005), shares 64 principles that he claims can make people more successful. In 2006, he appeared in the DVD, "The Secret," and shared his insights on the Law of Attraction and tips for achieving success in personal and professional life.
Jack Canfield was born on August 19, 1944, in Fort Worth, TX. He is the son of Elmer and Ellen (a homemaker; maiden name, Taylor). He attended high school at Linsly Military Institute, Wheeling, WV, 1962. He went to college at Harvard University, B.A., 1966; University of Massachusetts at Amherst, M.Ed., 1973. Canfield married Judith Ohlbaum in 1971 (divorced, November 1976); he married Georgia Lee Noble on September 9, 1978 (divorced, December 1999); he married Inga Marie Mahoney on July 4, 2001; children: (first marriage) Oran, David, Kyle, Dania; (second marriage) Christopher Noble. He is a Democrat and a Christian, and his hobbies include tennis, travel, skiing, running, billiards, reading, and guitar.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
April 20, 2017
A person reads different books for different reasons. Sometimes a reader just likes a little bit of inspirational/tugs-at-the-heartstrings tales. With Chicken Soup for the Soul books, you know that's exactly what you'll get. If I'm going to read any of the series, my interest goes toward gardens.
The kind of book to pick up now and again.
The kind of book to pick up now and again.
March 30, 2019
Loved this book! Reading funny and uplifting stories from gardeners about their garden - the joys, disappointments, aggregations, and triumphs that all of us can relate to.
June 2, 2021
The Chicken Soup books always lift my spirits, and this one was no different. I've gotten more and more into gardening over the last couple years (mostly sticking with houseplants, but still), and reading these stories of gardens and gardeners giving and loving and sharing was quite an enjoyable way to spend my day. I didn't want to put it down!
November 26, 2021
A very good book with wonderful uplifting stories.
December 10, 2022
I read the Chicken Soup books to feel good. This one for the Gardener's soul helps me realize why I garden.
October 30, 2023
Good garden short stories
January 23, 2024
Maybe more like 3.5 but this really helped with battling the winter blues and gave me wonderful day dreams of the spring that is to come.
August 9, 2024
Some entries are moving, some are funny, some are inspiring, but a sizeable portion are just blah. And the quality of the writing varies wildly. Good to read when you only have short amounts of down time and a short attention span. I guess this could be a review for all Chicken Soup books.
April 19, 2013
I live in a third story apartment with no porch or yard. I miss gardening. I've had a few gardens, but nothing like the garden of my dreams, so I thought with this book I would live vicariously. And I did, a little bit.
Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul explores the love of planting and growing things, whether it be food, flowers or trees. Just the act of getting in the dirt and making something come alive can be very satisfying. This book explored many different topics about gardening from The Joy of Gardening, Blossoming Friendships, Love in Bloom, Making a Difference, Little Sprouts, The Seasons of Life, Overcoming Obstacles, The Family Tree & Potpurri. One of my favorite stories was about a little girl and her birthday party, where instead of cake, everyone enjoyed home canned soup, and noone thought of her as being poor. All the stories were very nice, and I did notice quite a few were about roses (which I don't particularly care for aside from their cooking uses), but luckily, just as many were about vegetable and fruit growing. And there was even a story about lilacs, my favorite.
Gardener's are a special sort, and like to share. And there area lot of stories about people sharing the wealth of their gardens in this book. But as much as we read about the Gardener's here, I never really got a sense of depth about any of them. The stories were just too short to really explore the person who inspired them. There are a wide variety of peple represented in this book; couples, single people, older people, children, etc. I'd say there is probably a story for everyone.
As with there not being much depth of people, I also didn't feel that there was much depth of story in this book either. Like the flowers, they were pretty to look at, but you're forever at a distance and don't get to experience them up close or get in the dirt and plant them. It's almost like seeing a picture of a flower, nice, but leaves you wanting more. This is a quick read though. You can take one story at a time or read it all in one sitting.
I enjoyed this book but it didn't lessen my desire for a garden. Guess it's time to go live vicariously at the greenhouses.
Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul
Copyright 2000
352 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2013
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com
Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul explores the love of planting and growing things, whether it be food, flowers or trees. Just the act of getting in the dirt and making something come alive can be very satisfying. This book explored many different topics about gardening from The Joy of Gardening, Blossoming Friendships, Love in Bloom, Making a Difference, Little Sprouts, The Seasons of Life, Overcoming Obstacles, The Family Tree & Potpurri. One of my favorite stories was about a little girl and her birthday party, where instead of cake, everyone enjoyed home canned soup, and noone thought of her as being poor. All the stories were very nice, and I did notice quite a few were about roses (which I don't particularly care for aside from their cooking uses), but luckily, just as many were about vegetable and fruit growing. And there was even a story about lilacs, my favorite.
Gardener's are a special sort, and like to share. And there area lot of stories about people sharing the wealth of their gardens in this book. But as much as we read about the Gardener's here, I never really got a sense of depth about any of them. The stories were just too short to really explore the person who inspired them. There are a wide variety of peple represented in this book; couples, single people, older people, children, etc. I'd say there is probably a story for everyone.
As with there not being much depth of people, I also didn't feel that there was much depth of story in this book either. Like the flowers, they were pretty to look at, but you're forever at a distance and don't get to experience them up close or get in the dirt and plant them. It's almost like seeing a picture of a flower, nice, but leaves you wanting more. This is a quick read though. You can take one story at a time or read it all in one sitting.
I enjoyed this book but it didn't lessen my desire for a garden. Guess it's time to go live vicariously at the greenhouses.
Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul
Copyright 2000
352 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2013
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com
August 5, 2008
Great short stories that are joyous, sad and redeeming.
July 30, 2010
I think I've read this one twice. I love stories like the ones in Chicken Soup. They're all touching and inspirational.
October 13, 2010
It was really good. Even if you're not a gardener, there are some really touching stories.
July 13, 2015
I have always liked the Chicken Soup books and read them over and over again. They are truly inspirational. This one was no exception.
August 13, 2016
This has many stories that are touching and bring emotion. From front to back there is not wasted space.
February 10, 2017
Loved writing this book with my colleagues! First edition autographed books available by emailing Cynthia@CynthiaBrian.com
February 10, 2017
If you want to be inspired, pick up a copy of this New York Times best selling books. To buy autographed copies, email Cynthia@CynthiaBrian.com
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews