A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston

A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston, illustrated by Sylvia Long (Preschool - Grade 3)

Newberg Public Library recently added to our children's gardening collection with funds from the Chehalem Garden Club and the Oregon State Federation of Garden Clubs. Among these is the beautiful book, A Seed is Sleepy.

Author Dianna Hutts Aston and illustrator Sylvia Long (An Egg is Quiet) have once again gifted us with a new book to read over and over. A Seed is Sleepy is already an award-winning introduction to seeds for any age. Each page (even the end papers!) is filled with lovely, sweeping illustrations of both familiar and unfamiliar seeds including sunflowers, orchids, dandelions, sea coconuts and monkey's comb.

The text is simple, effective and poetic,"A seed is sleepy. A seed is secretive. A seed is naked...yes, naked!" even appropriate for a read-aloud which is unusual for a non-fiction selection. Older children will appreciate the extra bits of information scattered throughout, "A parachute of fine, silky hairs can take a dandelion seed 100 miles from its parent plant." One two-page spread walks the reader through varying seeds' lifespans laid out on a timeline with fabulous illustrations showing how they are different from each other.

Our household found much to pour over every single day of our three-week checkout and more! This is truly a gift for young gardeners or naturalists-to-be and worth sharing each season.

Visit http://www.newberglibrary.org/ to find this and other books at our library.

Reviewed by Amanda L., Children's Staff