Horn Book (Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

Every time a boy introduces his "best friend" (e.g., "My best friend is Murphy, my dog"), he ends up disappointed (Murphy prefers other dogs' company) and moves on to a new one. Jevons's nimble art tells the full, sweet story: the boy has had a fight with his real best buddy, with whom he reunites at book's end.

ALA Booklist (Tue May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2018)

This large-format book shows kids how they can use kitchen cast-offs to grow new food. For instance, most cooks cut off the top of a pineapple and discard it. But placed in a dish of water, the leafy top will grow roots that can be placed in soil and the new plant may produce a pineapple in two or three years. More short-term projects include growing new celery or romaine lettuce from their discarded bases, harvesting sweet potato shoots to plant, and using seeds collected from fresh-cut peppers and pumpkins. The encouraging, informative text is interspersed with appealing photos of kids gardening and plants in various stages of growth. Small digital pictures supplement the many photos, particularly in illustrating steps of the gardening projects. Throughout the book, planting projects are paired with recipes that, like most of the projects, may require some adult assistance but look very promising. Recipes include potato leek soup, a basil-parsley pesto, a pineapple-banana smoothie, sweet potato oven fries, and homemade lemonade. A fresh look at growing and preparing foods.

School Library Journal (Tue May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2018)

Gr 3-5 Don't throw away that lettuce core or those potato endsinstead, recycle and turn them into new plants. This is a beautiful book for beginning gardeners that encourages the use of kitchen scraps and cuttings. The title is filled with projects to grow sweet potatoes, lettuce, garlic, and many vegetables and herbs. Planting zones and soil composition, as well as tools and supplies needed are covered in the planning stage. Each project is then outlined with drawings, photography, and step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow. Each section also includes recipes for using the plants that are grown. There are instructions on how to make seedling pots from old newspapers and how to root stems in a glass of water. The author and the photographer are experienced gardeners and writers of children's nonfiction books, making this collection of projects even more valuable. VERDICT A fine addition to gardening collections. Cynde Suite, Bartow City. Library. System, Adairsville, GA

Kirkus Reviews

In this companion to The Nitty Gritty Gardening Book (2015), Cornell offers 12 gardening projects for preteens, focusing here on the regenerative power of plants and their parts.An introduction provides garden basics: the needs of plants, the role of pH, U.S. plant hardiness zones, and pollination. The four subsequent chapters are organized by type of propagation: sprouts from root ends; roots from cuttings; fostering growth from tubers, bulbs, and rhizomes; and planting saved seeds. Projects include sprouting romaine lettuce leaves, rooting herb cuttings, planting a ginger rhizome, and starting pepper and pumpkin plants from saved seeds. Ten nicely chosen (and delicious-sounding) recipes incorporate project ingredients—though most will require additional, store-bought items. Attractive photographs and clear drawings highlight step-by-step processes and the often modest growth of the propagated plants. (Cornell encourages patience; many projects require several weeks of monitoring.) A few missteps affect the overall package. State boundaries are difficult to discern on the hardiness map. While recommending organic produce (which is free of chemicals that inhibit sprouting), Cornell omits any discussion of hybrids, which, if propagated from seed, won't likely resemble the parent. Recipes lack yields and sometimes omit cautions regarding knife use.Quibbles aside, this engaging volume's strength—homing in on plants' specific regenerative properties—should spark STEM projects and home gardening fun, whether in a backyard or on an apartment windowsill. (glossary, print and web resources, supply sources, index) (Nonfiction. 8-11)