topiary

The Night Gardener by The Fan Brothers

| Tasha

The Night Gardener by The Fan Brothers

The Night Gardener by The Fan Brothers (InfoSoup)

William wakes up one morning to discover that the tree outside his window has been changed into an owl topiary. Day by day, more topiary appear along Grimloch Lane. There is a cat, a rabbit, a parakeet, and an elephant. Then one day, there is a dragon, that inspires the community to hang lanterns in its branches and along the road. It is that night that William notices a stranger with a ladder walking along. He follows the man to the local park where the man turns and invites William to help him. It is the night gardener and William helps him until he falls asleep. The next morning William awakens to see the park transformed by his work. As seasons change, the topiary disappear but the community spirit doesn’t.

This is one beautiful book. The text is simple, allowing the detailed illustrations to shine. Still, the text has gorgeous moments such as William watching the first topiary until it was too dark to see it anymore. This book is slow and steady, magical but also homely. It is filled with community spirit that readers can watch build steadily as the night gardener gives his gifts.

The community spirit is shown as homes with boarded-up windows turn into a dynamic community right before their eyes. The illustrations are beautiful, filled with touches that show the where the gardener gets his inspiration. The illustrations tell much of the story, showing that William lives in an orphanage and vividly demonstrating the inspiration a community can get from art.

A gorgeous and vibrant read, this book can be paired nicely with Lane Smith’s Grandpa Green for a topiary triumph. Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Simon & Schuster.

Book Review: Grandpa Green by Lane Smith

| Tasha

grandpa green

Grandpa Green by Lane Smith

Released August 30, 2011.

Grandpa Green was born long ago.  He grew up on a farm, got chicken pox in fourth grade, and kissed a girl in middle school.  Though he wanted to be a horticulturist, he ended up going to war.  There he met his future wife, whom he married when the war ended.  Now Grandpa Green is getting old and starting to forget things.  But he doesn’t forget the most important things, because the garden keeps his memories for him.

Smith has created an amazing world in the pages of this book.  It is a place where a man brings his memories to life through topiary, each one more inventive and beautiful than the next.  Smith has kept his words simple.  Just enough to move the story forward.

It is the pictures that tell the story here.  Smith has lightened the characters down to line drawings and subtle color.  The topiaries are a vivid green, bursting with life against the white of the page.  Grandpa’s memories are more solid than the real world, which works beautifully with the story.  The topiaries are whimsical and gorgeous, shown as the little boy moves through the garden and interacts with them.  There is one amazing page with the boy hanging from a branch of a giant tree where the leaves turn from green to autumn to bare branches as the eye moves across the tree.  It is a visual of aging that works beautifully.

This is a creative and entrancing picture book that brings memories to green life, celebrates a great-grandfather, and shows the relationship between him and his great-grandson.  It is a triumph of a picture book!  One of my favorites of the year, and one that should be under consideration for a Caldecott.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Roaring Brook Press.

Also reviewed by Shelf Awareness.

Check out the trailer that almost catches the charm of the book: