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In a Garden
“McCanna's superb scansion never misses...Like its subject: full of bustling life yet peaceful.” —Kirkus Reviews
Acclaimed author Tim McCanna celebrates gardens, nature, and all sorts of critters in this delightful and vibrant read-aloud picture book.
In the earth
a single seed
sits beside a millipede
worms and termites
dig and toil
moving through the garden soil
How does a garden grow? Follow along from seed to sprout to bud to flower as a garden blooms. Worms, ladybugs, millipedes, and more help a garden grow each season. Tim McCanna’s gorgeous, rhyming text, combined with Aimée Sicuro’s stunning illustrations make this charming picture book as informative as it is fun to read aloud.
Bonus backmatter features tons of cool facts about ecosystems and the symbiosis between plants and bugs.
Acclaimed author Tim McCanna celebrates gardens, nature, and all sorts of critters in this delightful and vibrant read-aloud picture book.
In the earth
a single seed
sits beside a millipede
worms and termites
dig and toil
moving through the garden soil
How does a garden grow? Follow along from seed to sprout to bud to flower as a garden blooms. Worms, ladybugs, millipedes, and more help a garden grow each season. Tim McCanna’s gorgeous, rhyming text, combined with Aimée Sicuro’s stunning illustrations make this charming picture book as informative as it is fun to read aloud.
Bonus backmatter features tons of cool facts about ecosystems and the symbiosis between plants and bugs.
48 pages, Hardcover
Published February 18, 2020
3 people are currently reading
133 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
May 4, 2020
The gentle rhyming text in this book celebrates the diversity of life in a community garden throughout the year, beginning in spring "In the earth / a single seed / sits beside a millipede." through summer "Blooms of every shape and size / call to bees and butterflies," to autumn, winter and finally back to spring, when "Time goes by / and by / and then... / life returns / to start / again." McCanna shows young readers that there is so much activity in a garden, bugs and insects, their activity often unseen and unnoticed, are as busily at work as the children and adults. Flowers, insects and bugs are all named within the rhyme. My young readers and I were luckily enough to read this before we had to shelter at home, and they loved exploring each page and talking about everything there is to see. For example, one two page spread shows a mama bird bringing a tasty worm to her newly hatched babies in their nest, a squirrel running down the tree, a bird enjoying some green growing treats, and a butterfly going about her business all unnoticed by a little girl walking her dog. The seasonal illustrations are done in watercolor, ink, charcoal and Photoshop and the people are as diverse as the depicted vegetables, flowers and creatures. This book was rated A+ by my young readers.
September 10, 2022
Cute! Love those illustrations!
March 26, 2020
Do you know Tim McCanna's books? If not, then you should! McCanna's use of rhythm, language, and delightful storylines make all of his books huge hits in our house with both children and adults. And now he has a new book out! Read on to learn all about why we love In a Garden by Tim McCanna, illustrated by Aimée Sicuro.
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"In a garden / on a hill / sparrows chirp / and crickets trill" begins our year-long adventure through changes that happen in a neighborhood garden atop a hill in a city. We begin with the seed, sitting on the ground, and end with the next spring, when life is a new beginning. In between, both the garden and the families celebrate the change and growth that comes with new seasons throughout the year. We rejoice in the emergence of seedlings and flowers, the journeys of slugs and snails, journeys through natural elements and growing families, and connection and community. And all this written in neatly packaged verse means that this is a delight to read aloud!
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Honestly, any children's book that incorporates words such as "trill," "scuttle," "frantic," "dainty," "aglo," "lacewings," and more, and still read in a light-hearted, fun, and modern way is a win to my ears! Be sure to read through "How Does a Garden Grow?" in the backmatter for child-friendly information about the ecosystems of gardens and all the work, from all the critters, that make them grow!
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I'd be remiss to tell you about In a Garden without addressing how beautiful these illustrations are! Using watercolor, charcoal, and ink, Sicuro fills (most of) the pages with color and life. Even the endpapers are brimming with color! Seriously, I feel like I want a print of those flowers hanging in our house! And when winter hits, Sicuro manages to fill an almost-all-white page with emotion and movement. Simply stunning!
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Do you have a favorite Tim McCanna book? We also love Teeny Tiny Trucks, Watersong, Boing! A Very Noisy ABC, and Jack B. Ninja!
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
"In a garden / on a hill / sparrows chirp / and crickets trill" begins our year-long adventure through changes that happen in a neighborhood garden atop a hill in a city. We begin with the seed, sitting on the ground, and end with the next spring, when life is a new beginning. In between, both the garden and the families celebrate the change and growth that comes with new seasons throughout the year. We rejoice in the emergence of seedlings and flowers, the journeys of slugs and snails, journeys through natural elements and growing families, and connection and community. And all this written in neatly packaged verse means that this is a delight to read aloud!
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Honestly, any children's book that incorporates words such as "trill," "scuttle," "frantic," "dainty," "aglo," "lacewings," and more, and still read in a light-hearted, fun, and modern way is a win to my ears! Be sure to read through "How Does a Garden Grow?" in the backmatter for child-friendly information about the ecosystems of gardens and all the work, from all the critters, that make them grow!
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
I'd be remiss to tell you about In a Garden without addressing how beautiful these illustrations are! Using watercolor, charcoal, and ink, Sicuro fills (most of) the pages with color and life. Even the endpapers are brimming with color! Seriously, I feel like I want a print of those flowers hanging in our house! And when winter hits, Sicuro manages to fill an almost-all-white page with emotion and movement. Simply stunning!
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Do you have a favorite Tim McCanna book? We also love Teeny Tiny Trucks, Watersong, Boing! A Very Noisy ABC, and Jack B. Ninja!
February 6, 2020
What a wonderful book to ring in Spring! Written in poetic form, each page rings almost like a happy, peaceful song as it describes the wonders of life on a hill.
Small and large, every part of life from worms to termites to birds and flowers are brought across in a bright, cheery way. This one is perfect for a read-aloud and will have listeners (and the reader) sinking into the garden scene and looking forward to heading out into nature themselves. Life abounds in each phrase, and yet, offers the lovely calm that only nature can. It's simply well done.
The illustrations have the same effect. These are busy and chucked full of life, and still they offer a general sense of satisfaction and comfort. Every part is bright and colorful, and even the tiniest creatures are done with love. There is so much to discover in each scene, making it one young listeners can explore again and again and always find something new.
I received an ARC and enjoyed this one quite a bit. Even my kids loved flipping through the various scenes. So, I'm leaving my honest thoughts.
Small and large, every part of life from worms to termites to birds and flowers are brought across in a bright, cheery way. This one is perfect for a read-aloud and will have listeners (and the reader) sinking into the garden scene and looking forward to heading out into nature themselves. Life abounds in each phrase, and yet, offers the lovely calm that only nature can. It's simply well done.
The illustrations have the same effect. These are busy and chucked full of life, and still they offer a general sense of satisfaction and comfort. Every part is bright and colorful, and even the tiniest creatures are done with love. There is so much to discover in each scene, making it one young listeners can explore again and again and always find something new.
I received an ARC and enjoyed this one quite a bit. Even my kids loved flipping through the various scenes. So, I'm leaving my honest thoughts.
July 3, 2020
In a Garden by Tim McCanna, illustrated by Aimée Sicuro, PICTURE BOOK A Paula Wiseman Book (Simon and Schuster), 2020, $18. 9781534417977
BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ESSENTIAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
A neighborhood garden engages the children, plants, insects, flowers, birds everything! From the beginning of spring and an underground view of a seed and earthworms, to garden flats full of vegetables in the fall, this is a delightful romp. Families visit, and everyone helps.
What a splendid story - and the illustrations! Tim McCanna's verse is brilliant, telling about how things grow, listing the flowers and bugs and keeping track of what everyone is doing. A must have for a classroom, and the poetry is perfect to read aloud.
Lisa Librarian
https://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com/20...
BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ESSENTIAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
A neighborhood garden engages the children, plants, insects, flowers, birds everything! From the beginning of spring and an underground view of a seed and earthworms, to garden flats full of vegetables in the fall, this is a delightful romp. Families visit, and everyone helps.
What a splendid story - and the illustrations! Tim McCanna's verse is brilliant, telling about how things grow, listing the flowers and bugs and keeping track of what everyone is doing. A must have for a classroom, and the poetry is perfect to read aloud.
Lisa Librarian
https://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com/20...
February 5, 2020
Lovely, rhythmic, lyrical text that is succinct and yet manages to squeeze in lots of details about different plants and wildlife in a busy city garden. "In the earth/a single seed/sits beside a millipede./Worms and termites/dig and toil/moving through the garden soil." The watercolor illustrations add even more warmth and visual interest, with animals and children hard at work and play in the background. Beautifully written an illustrated, this is a perfect book to share for spring and summer or any time of year to appreciate nature! I love how it ends with a single seed slipping into the soil to start the cycle again.
February 15, 2020
A vibrantly illustrated, rhyming celebration of spring.
October 23, 2020
A lovely celebration of the interconnectedness of nature.
February 5, 2021
Through rhyming verses and vivid watercolor illustrations, In a Garden explores how things grow. From seeds being planted to sunlight and rain nurturing the plants, readers see all of the various aspects of natural growth both in a garden and in those who nurture and care for the garden. McCanna identifies a variety of flowers and vegetables that grow in gardens, while also describing the duties of the various insects that help the garden grow. The four seasons establish how things grow unseen, and also establish the life cycle with insects laying eggs and a woman, pregnant in the beginning, holding a baby when spring returns after winter.
This is a gorgeous picture book. Sicuro’s watercolors represent each aspect of the natural world beautifully, while McCanna’s words are playful and representative of the life cycle. Many readers will see themselves in this text because the garden is in a city, and the humans are representative of the diversity in a city. This picture book is a great introduction to the life cycle, gardening, and caring for the natural world. It would pair well with growing a school garden or just planting a seed that students can take home and grow.
This is a gorgeous picture book. Sicuro’s watercolors represent each aspect of the natural world beautifully, while McCanna’s words are playful and representative of the life cycle. Many readers will see themselves in this text because the garden is in a city, and the humans are representative of the diversity in a city. This picture book is a great introduction to the life cycle, gardening, and caring for the natural world. It would pair well with growing a school garden or just planting a seed that students can take home and grow.
April 29, 2025
In a Garden by Tim McCanna is a lyrical and beautifully illustrated journey into the vibrant, ever-changing world of a garden. McCanna’s poetic text seamlessly weaves together the rhythms of nature, offering young readers a gentle but rich exploration of how gardens grow—from the tiniest seeds to the buzzing, blooming world above and below the soil. His words paint vivid pictures of plants and critters of all shapes and sizes, creating a sensory experience that invites curiosity and wonder.
The illustrations by Aimée Sicuro are equally enchanting, full of soft textures and earthy colors that capture the magic and movement of garden life. Children will delight in spotting snails, worms, bees, and butterflies as they turn each page, making this not just a book to read, but one to explore.
Perfect for preschool and early elementary-aged children, In a Garden is a celebration of nature’s quiet miracles and the joy of observation. Whether you’re reading at storytime, learning about plants, or simply enjoying a moment of calm, this book is a lovely choice. Highly recommended!
The illustrations by Aimée Sicuro are equally enchanting, full of soft textures and earthy colors that capture the magic and movement of garden life. Children will delight in spotting snails, worms, bees, and butterflies as they turn each page, making this not just a book to read, but one to explore.
Perfect for preschool and early elementary-aged children, In a Garden is a celebration of nature’s quiet miracles and the joy of observation. Whether you’re reading at storytime, learning about plants, or simply enjoying a moment of calm, this book is a lovely choice. Highly recommended!
September 11, 2020
“McCanna's superb scansion never misses...Like its subject: full of bustling life yet peaceful.” —Kirkus Reviews
Acclaimed author Tim McCanna celebrates gardens, nature, and all sorts of critters in this delightful and vibrant read-aloud picture book.
In the earth
a single seed
sits beside a millipede
worms and termites
dig and toil
moving through the garden soil
How does a garden grow? Follow along from seed to sprout to bud to flower as a garden blooms. Worms, ladybugs, millipedes, and more help a garden grow each season. Tim McCanna’s gorgeous, rhyming text, combined with Aimée Sicuro’s stunning illustrations make this charming picture book as informative as it is fun to read aloud.
Bonus backmatter features tons of cool facts about ecosystems and the symbiosis between plants and bugs
Acclaimed author Tim McCanna celebrates gardens, nature, and all sorts of critters in this delightful and vibrant read-aloud picture book.
In the earth
a single seed
sits beside a millipede
worms and termites
dig and toil
moving through the garden soil
How does a garden grow? Follow along from seed to sprout to bud to flower as a garden blooms. Worms, ladybugs, millipedes, and more help a garden grow each season. Tim McCanna’s gorgeous, rhyming text, combined with Aimée Sicuro’s stunning illustrations make this charming picture book as informative as it is fun to read aloud.
Bonus backmatter features tons of cool facts about ecosystems and the symbiosis between plants and bugs
April 23, 2020
A neighborhood garden engages the children, plants, insects, flowers, birds everything! From the beginning of spring and an underground view of a seed and earthworms, to garden flats full of vegetables in the fall, this is a delightful romp. Families visit, and everyone helps.
What a splendid story - and the illustrations! Tim McCanna's verse is brilliant, telling about how things grow, listing the flowers and bugs and keeping track of what everyone is doing. A must have for a classroom, and the poetry is perfect to read aloud.
For this and more of my reviews, visit http://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com
What a splendid story - and the illustrations! Tim McCanna's verse is brilliant, telling about how things grow, listing the flowers and bugs and keeping track of what everyone is doing. A must have for a classroom, and the poetry is perfect to read aloud.
For this and more of my reviews, visit http://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com
February 3, 2020
In a Garden by Tim McCanna is a delightful. I am a huge fan of rhyme, singable books, gardens and nature, and this ticks all the boxes for me! An ideal book for Pre-K and Kindergarden classes discovering the garden and the season therein. The stunning rhyming text introduces children to plenty of insects and flowers. Wonderful watercolour illustrations, in a soft, gentle palette, by illustrator Aimée Sicuro guide you from above the ground to what is hiding underneath. Charming and well deserved five stars!
February 4, 2020
“In a garden, on a hill…” thus begins this lyrical journal through an urban garden season by season. Told in vivid terse rhyme, this story explores the vibrant and hidden aspects of a garden, from sprouts bursting “up and out” to ants scrambling up “stems of plants” to “careful rows” of eggs laid in the shade. This book would make the perfect companion text for classrooms and families starting their own gardens. Engaging back matter provides even more information about food chains and life cycles as they apply to garden habitats.
February 6, 2020
A child gazes out the window of his apartment at the garden below wondering how a garden grows.
The words and illustrations seem to finish each others thoughts, playing together perfectly while revealing the life cycles of living creatures, from seeds, plants, bugs, birds and finally to people. Readers riding on McCanna's lilting rhyme will be taken on entertaining, yet informative journey, that comes full circle on the last page. An author's note about how a garden grows is included. A joy for the ears and eyes!
The words and illustrations seem to finish each others thoughts, playing together perfectly while revealing the life cycles of living creatures, from seeds, plants, bugs, birds and finally to people. Readers riding on McCanna's lilting rhyme will be taken on entertaining, yet informative journey, that comes full circle on the last page. An author's note about how a garden grows is included. A joy for the ears and eyes!
August 9, 2020
This microcosm of life is beautifully portrayed as we witness the cycles of plants, and insects, worms & small animals within a small garden. The sweet, abundant illustrations complement the flawless rhyme of the story, adding another layer as we watch neighbors enjoying this city greenspace. The author’s facts at the end ensure that this book can be referred to again & again, by both adults and young botanists, gardeners, entomologists and historians! This book is rich at every level.
September 10, 2020
Joyful and colorful watercolor illustrations fill this well-written, rhyming book about a year in a garden, from the planting and growth of seeds to fall harvest, winter slumber, and starting all over again. Depicts a multiracial community of children and adults cultivating and enjoying the garden together. The rhyming text is never forced, and is full of interesting and specific words.
Themes: Garden, Community, Growth, Weather, Flowers
Age range: 2-6
Themes: Garden, Community, Growth, Weather, Flowers
Age range: 2-6
March 27, 2020
IN A GARDEN by Tim McCanna and Aimee Sicuro is a perfect cycle-of-life story. Inside the garden, readers will discover Sicuro's illustrations add a second level as we watch the young family grow through the seasons too. And did you know that Tim McCanna has put this clever text to music? (See and hear it on SimonKids YouTube!)
April 9, 2021
This book makes me want to plant my garden now! It explores the intricate ins and out of the garden. The leaves, bugs, flowers and beauty that live there. The illustrations are beautiful and I hope my garden looks just as lovely! This book would be good for earth day in a classroom or two inspire your own to help plant a garden.
January 8, 2025
Delightful, full of every aspect of a garden from seed to bloom, and all the creatures that hide in and around them. McCanna's perfect rhyme will provide satisfaction to the youngest reader (though it slows the pace somewhat without any kind of soft break). Colorful illustrations invite the reader to look for all the activity-- and undoubtedly will inspire a desire for starting one's own!
February 7, 2020
In the earth
a single seed
sits beside a millipede.
So begins the wonderful celebration of the workings of a community garden. With lovely rhyme and gorgeous illustrations, this picture book is an absolute delight.
a single seed
sits beside a millipede.
So begins the wonderful celebration of the workings of a community garden. With lovely rhyme and gorgeous illustrations, this picture book is an absolute delight.
March 26, 2020
A celebration of all that happens in a garden, this is a perfect springtime story. The illustrations are soft and colorful. The text rhymes and shares the buzzing, radiant life in a garden. For a kid who likes bugs this book is teeming with all kinds of life.
April 13, 2020
This lyrical picture book invites readers to follow the life cycle of a garden. Each plant and insect is highlighted with thoughtful rhyme and soft illustrations. Young readers will enjoy listening to the text and exploring every illustration. Sure to become a read aloud favorite!
August 25, 2020
With short, lyrical text, this book gives a detailed account of what is happening in a garden (even the things you don't usually notice, like a ladybug hiding under a leaf. Colorful illustrations accent the words and add to the story, telling some of what the text doesn't. It is a beautiful read.
October 23, 2020
"In a garden/full of green/many moments/go unseen./Finding shelter/in the shade/careful rows of eggs are laid/as a cool and gentle breeze/whispers through the tops of trees." This is a peaceful celebration of a garden in the heart of the city.
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May 6, 2021A cute book about everything in a garden and how every aspect is needed to make the garden grow successfully. Great book in starting to help children learn about environmentalism. Great pictures as well.
Read
October 15, 2021A charming poem that explores what goes on - seen and unseen - in a garden throughout the year. From soil to flowers to trees and their seeds that fall, this little book has something for curious youngsters to explore on every page.
January 4, 2022
Set in a small urban community garden, this rhyming text traces a year in, around, and under the garden beds and features more bugs than usual. Soft watercolor illustrations with details to enjoy. A background story of a pregnant mother who appears at the end with a small infant in a carrier.
June 7, 2022
super cute book
I loved the illustrations, they were beautifully done and gave the reader lots to enjoy while reading this quick story! 5/5 I think my kids will continue to love this story!
I loved the illustrations, they were beautifully done and gave the reader lots to enjoy while reading this quick story! 5/5 I think my kids will continue to love this story!
April 7, 2023
This is a beautiful children's book about a school garden on a hill over the course of a year. The illustrations are lovely and full of movement. I like that the poem rhymes throughout and reads almost like a narrative. Everything happens in succession and comes full circle the following year.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews