The Garden Scouts: Buzzing With Love

by Rachael Hartzell

Join Kiki and Rhino on a heartwarming adventure of friendship and love in this allegory crafted for Christian families. When Kiki, a buzzing fly craving friendship, and Rhino, a grouchy beetle, are paired up during their first Garden Scouts meeting to earn their Love Strawberry pins, they quickly realize that love can be expressed in a multitude of ways. Through the ups and downs of their journey, they learn about the power of grit, the beauty of empathy, and the unconditional nature of love. The first of nine books in The Garden Scouts series, this charming book is a must-have for Christian parents looking to teach their children the true meaning of love, and how to live out this fruit of the Spirit.

Genres: Childrens

40 pages, Hardcover

Published September 18, 2023

About the author

Rachael Hartzell holds a degree in elementary education and wears many hats. On top of being a wife and mother, she's a homeschooler, kid's ministry volunteer, and the founder and owner of Little Honeycomb Press, a small publishing business for children's books.

As a teacher, she loves turning everyday moments for kids into learning opportunities through meaningful connections. She believes children's literature, a passion of hers, should be no different. The Garden Scouts: Buzzing With Love is the first book of nine in her picture book series.

Rachael's other passions include cooking, nature, and homesteading.

Reviews

[Shani · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a super cute and fun read. The message of showing compassion, determination, and love was strong in this story. From Rhino's own history of how he's treated sticking with him, to Kiki's show of support, it made for the perfect story about how easily you can change someone's perception. I also loved how the lessons were set up with the scout meeting.

this was a fun read that is perfect to share with young kids—a solid lesson within the pages. The illustrations were beautifully done as well!

[Maggie - Busy Moms Read Too · Rating 5 out of 5]

A super cute children’s book series on the fruits of the spirit!

[Christie Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a charming story of learning to love someone hard to love. I also really love the illustrations - they are very eye-catching, with lots to look at on each page.

[T.E. Elliott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful!

Not only is the artwork colorful and vibrant, the story has beautiful meaning that is perfect for cultivating timeless truths in young hearts. The quality of this picture book is spot on and I highly recommend for all ages!

[Mq · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love!

A very sweet story that does a great job teaching a fruit of the spirit. My kiddos and I loved the story and the beautiful and cheerful illustrations!

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this to my neighbor's kids and can't wait to read it to my grandkids! The illustrations are excellent and all the characters are big enough on the page for little fingers to touch and see. The text is perfect for beginning readers who may need just a little help here and there with how to read a longer word. There are poems at the beginning and end as well, we got to talk a bunch about what a poem is and how cool it was that the poems were about the things the book talks about.

The Garden Scouts: Buzzing With Love is a wonderful story about loving others and making it part of everything you do. While this is the first of nine (NINE!!) books on the Christian fruits of the Spirit, there are no preachy overtones or anything. You can read this book to your children of any faith and you will be teaching them behaviors that will lead them to be kind and loving people.

I am looking forward to the next book in this series, I can't wait to read them to all the children in my life!

[Mariann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was adorable! Such a great way to demonstrate showing love to children. I'm so excited for the rest of The Garden Scouts series to see what Kiki and Rhino get up to next :)

*I received a free copy as part of a goodreads giveaway. This is my honest review*