Kat MacLeod, The Tiny Gardeners, Thames & Hudson, August 2024, 32 pp., RRP $26.99 (hbk), ISBN 9780760763367
This would be the perfect picture book for children who already have access to a garden at home or at school, or who are keen to establish their own garden.
The tiny gardeners are a team of industrious miniature adults busy planting and tending a range of vegetables, fruit and flowers. Every aspect is covered from potting up seeds and planting cuttings, to the need for stakes and canes, mulching and pruning.
The seasons play a major part in any garden, as do the bees who pollinate the flowers. As harvesting begins, all the hard work is rewarded, and the summer air is full of the fresh smell of the vegetables and fruit and the perfume of flowers.
Kat Macleod is an experienced artist and illustrator who is inspired by nature. She uses mixed media and here she has combined detailed drawings of the tiny gardeners with a looser, more casual style for the plants and flowers. Two very different endpapers, one depicting a sunny day, the other, a big storm bringing much needed rain, add to the book’s appeal.
Targeted at ages 2-8.
Reviewed by Elizabeth Douglas