Picture Book Breakdown: The Little Gardener

The Little Gardener by Emily Hughes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

THE LITTLE GARDENER 

By Emily Hughes

Published: 2015

Flying Eye Books

Ages: 3-7

Pages: typed 1; 33 pb

Words: 294

    Now most of the reviews I've read for this book have all been about the illustrations.  The pictures are gorgeous.  The illustrator is also author of the book and is therefore likely flattered by this.  But I was interested in weather the words held up without the artwork.  So I borrowed the book from my friend the librarian and brought it home to study.

    Let's take a look at the story without all the pretty pictures surrounding it.  

P3: This was the garden

P4: It didn’t look like much, Pt

P5-P6

but it meant everything to it’s gardener. PT 

P7

It was his home.  It was his supper.

P8

It was his joy.  PT

P9

Only, he wasn’t much good at gardening.

P10

It wasn’t that he didn’t work hard.  Pt

P11

He worked hard,

P12

-very, very hard. Pt

Ph13

He was just too little.

P14

But there was one thing that did blossom in his garden. PT

P15 - 16

It was a flower.  It was alive and wonderful.  It gave the gardener hope and it made him work even harder.  PT

author and illustrator Emily Hughes

    To me this is where the second "Act" begins. Again I don't mean Act like a stage play but
as in were the second section of the story kicks in. In the first section was are introduced to our gardener friend. He's no stranger to hard work but his take is a big one. So that is our theme - the struggle of being a little person in a big world. The struggle of working hard and seeing no progress. The struggle of effort without reward. A child reading it might be able to relate to guy, they have no control over what's going on. And the parent's too can relate, because even as adults we learn just how little control we have over anything that really matters.

    Now we have this flower. This flower that grows in his garden and gives him hope. It gives us hope too that the little gardener will and answer to his problem, and we read on.

P17

He worked all morning.

He worked all afternoon.  

Pg 18 

He worked all night.  PT

Pg19

Still, the garden was dying.

Pg20

He would have no home.

He would have no supper.  PT

Pg21

He would have no joy.

Pg 22

One night, feeling tired and sad, he made a wish. PT

Pg23

No one heard his little voice, 

Pg 24

-but someone saw saw his flower.  PT

Pg 25

It was alive and wonderful.  

Pg26

It gave the someone hope.

It made the someone want to work hard.

    I love love love this part. So many times we hear about how making a wish will solve problems in these stories meant for children. Use jaded adults just sort of grin and bear it and wait for them to learn otherwise. Here the little gardener made a wish and no one heard it. How bold is that! Instead someone sees his flower! Someone sees the product of his hard work! Someone sees the hope that he has kept alive through that hard work and they feel hopeful too, and they are encouraged to work hard! Wow! This is so simple and so unspecific that it works on so many levels. Anyone can relate to it.

    And thus ends Act Two. One into Act Three.

Pg 27

The next day the gardener was weary and slept the whole day.  

Pg 28 

He slept the whole week.  He slept the whole month.  PT

Pg29

And when he finally awoke,

Pg 30

-it had been just long enough for something to change.

    Now this is the weaker part of the story for me. I know I usually like when stories don't explain their magic but I was concerned. What my little dude dead? Was he hibernating? What was going on? I'd almost prefer if he'd left town, or gotten sick. I'd really have loved if if he kept working at night or something and seeing progress as it happened, believing he'd done something. Or even if he saw his help. I don't know. Anything but sleeping through it.

Pg 31 

This is the garden now.

Pg 32

And this is its gardener.  

Pg 33

He doesn’t look like much, but he means everything to his garden.  

    I love love love the ending! It revisits the beginning full circle with that last line mirroring the first. And now we have this touching feeling of love that the garden feels for the one who loved it first.

    I think the ultimate strength of this story is relatable. Young readers can relate to it, parents can relate to it, even the smallest little listeners taking it all literally can relate to it as they try to affect things in their own little worlds.

    I saw many reviewers didn't care for the simple language of this book, but I'm not sure the were reading it aloud to kids. I found it easy and fun reading it to my toddler. And considering how many times many parents may end up reading a book with such lovely pictures it is actually quite nice that it isn't too wordy. Less than 300 words in fact.

    Lovely little book! Please it check it out and try reading it aloud to your favorite little one. If you love it as much as I do please consider supporting the author/illustrator Emily Hughes by buying her book! I have no claim to the copyright I am just fan. Learn more about Hughes here.

    If you enjoy these picture book breakdowns please read more on my blog below. I enjoy writing them and would love some feedback.

    Have you read the little gardener? What do you think of the words without the pictures? If you were two inches tall what would you grow? Leave a comment below and I hope to see you next time!

            See you on the next page!