About
My Baba's Garden Synopsis
The bond between a child and his grandmother grows as they tend her garden together.
A young boy spends his mornings with his beloved Baba, his grandmother. She doesn't speak much English, but they connect through gestures, gardening, eating, and walking to school together. Marked by memories of wartime scarcity, Baba cherishes food, and the boy learns to do the same. Eventually, Baba needs to move in with the boy and his parents, and he has the chance to care for her as she's always cared for him.
Inspired by memories from poet Jordan Scott's childhood, with beautiful, dreamlike illustrations by Hans Christian Andersen Award-winning illustrator Sydney Smith, My Baba's Garden is a deeply personal story that evokes universal emotions. Like Scott and Smith's previous collaboration I Talk Like a River, winner of the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, My Baba's Garden lends wistful appreciation to cherished time with family.
A Charlotte Zolotow Honor Book
A New York Public Library Best Book of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of the Year
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A Horn Book Fanfare Book
A Booklist Editors' Choice
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
An Evanston Public Library Great Book for Kids
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9780823450831 |
| Publication date: |
7th March 2023 |
| Author: |
Jordan Scott |
| Illustrator: |
Sydney Smith |
| Publisher: |
Neal Porter Books an imprint of Holiday House |
| Format: |
Hardback |
| Pagination: |
32 pages |
| Suitable For: |
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| Other Genres: |
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Press Reviews
Jordan Scott Press Reviews
'There are picturebooks and there are Scott/Smith picturebooks. Together, they are a creative dream team. […] It’s an extraordinary book about love and family, full of lyrical writing, and Smith’s illustrations are sublime. An original, heart-squeezing hug of a book.' - The best new children’s books to read this Easter, Irish Independent
'I loved the illustrations because even though the grandma doesn’t say anything you can see what she is thinking and feeling from the pictures. ' -- Unaysa (age 4) - Kids Book Reviews, Books Up North
'My Baba’s Garden is a book for intergenerational sharing and much more besides. […] A moving testament to the resilience of the human spirit and enduring love.' - Books for Keeps
'This peaceful tale will be sure to transport many readers to treasured moment with their own families. Astonishing and evocative artwork by award winning illustrator Sydney Smith casts a comforting light on what is set to become a much-requested classic.' - WRD
'This stunning picture book beautifully conveys the author’s cherished childhood memories of a special relationship with his Polish grandmother […] Smith’s wonderful artwork is filled with empathy and feeling. […] A powerful moving story of intergenerational love.' - The School Librarian
Author
About Jordan Scott
Jordan Scott is a poet whose work includes Silt, Blert, Decomp and Night & Ox. Blert, which explores the poetics of stuttering, is the subject of a National Film Board of Canada project: Flub and Utter: a Poetic Memoir of the Mouth. Scott was the recipient of the Latner Writers' Trust Poetry Prize for his contributions to Canadian poetry. I Talk Like a River is his first book for children. Jordan Scott lives on Vancouver Island, Canada, with his wife and two sons. Sydney Smith has illustrated multiple children's books, including Small in the City, Town Is by the Sea, the winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal, The White Cat and the Monk, written by Jo Ellen Bogart, and the acclaimed Footpath Flowers, which was a New York Times Children's Book of the Year and a winner of the Governor General Award for Illustration. Born in Nova Scotia in Canada, Sydney now lives in Toronto with his wife and son. Find him online at hutten.org/sydney and on Twitter and Instagram as @sydneydraws.
More About Jordan Scott
