CANDLER, Gillian (text) Ned Barraud (illus.) In the Garden Craig Potton Pub, 2013 32pp NZ$19.99 pbk ISBN 9781877517990 SCIS 1633720
In The Garden is a powerful trope in literature and in life. The opening of this picture book invites children to enter the mysteries of this space and to learn that it is literally alive with nature. After a brief introduction, three questions are asked and brief answers given: what lives in the ground, what lives on the plants and what lives the trees? Then there is a brief introduction to six categories of species, broadly defined, emerging from these questions. Finally, there is a glossary, index and list of websites to assist younger readers to find out more about what has excited them.
The illustrations are richly done, adding atmosphere and emotion so that children may begin to acquire the sense of beauty, awe and wonder that this space evokes. JMcK
