Skip to main content

Review: Millie Fleur's Poison Garden

Image
By
Millie Fleur's Poison Garden
By Christy Mandin
New York: Orchard Books, 2024. Picture Book.

The town of Garden Glen is "a picture-perfect place," which means that everything is lovely, perfect, and exactly the same. Except for the the decrepit old house on the edge of town where no one has lived for years. Until Millie Fleur La Fae and her mother move in. Millie loves her new house, but it's missing one thing. Millie Fleur sets to work planting a wicked and wonderfully wild garden filled with plants like "sore toothwart," and "grumpy gillyflower." And though the uptight town elders deride her garden as "poisonous," the other kids in town start to show interest -- which eventually trickles into the other gardens in town.

This is a simple and sweet picture book that would be so fun to share with children during spooky season. The illustrations are charming and Tim Burton-esque, with a protagonist who resembles Wednesday Addams, yet the pictures still feel original. Children will love to study the illustrations with each re-reading. A bonus is an author's note at the end that explains the author was inspired by a real life Poison Garden. 
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

An ABC of Flowers

By
An ABC of Flowers   by Jutta Hilpuesch New York, NY : Philomel Books, [2019] It turns out there really is a flower for every letter. This sweet book has a photograph of every flower and  a sweet cartoon illustration to go along with it. All your favorite flowers are here (forget-me-nots, mums, and sunflowers), along with some you probably haven't heard of before (billy ball, kalanchoe, xeranthemum?).  This is a perfect book for reading together, and readers of any age will enjoy every page. Don't miss this great springtime alphabet book. 
Post a Comment
Read more

From Story Time: The Letter "B"

By
From Monday Book Babies Bird, Balloon, Bear By Il Sung Na Alfred A. Knopf, 2017.  Picture Book. Bird is new to the forest, and he’s looking for a friend. Bear could use a friend, too. But Bird is too shy to introduce himself. Just as he musters the courage to say hello . . . it’s too late! Bear has already found a friend: a bright, shiny red balloon. Has Bird missed his chance?  From the acclaimed Il Sung Na comes a charming and beautifully illustrated story about courage, kindness, and friendship.  --Publisher From Monday Cuentos El primer día de un colegio Texto de Adam Rex Ilustraciones de Christian Robinson Traducción de Teresa Mlawer Editorial Corimbo, 2017.  Spanish Picture Book. Aquel verano, cuando terminaron de construir la escuela Frederick Douglass, el edificio comenzó a hacerse muchas preguntas: ¿Cuál será mi destino? ¿Quién vivirá entre mis paredes? ¿Para qué me utilizarán? Através de sus conversaciones con el conserje y t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Display: Out of this World Books Found Here

By
Hello By Aiko Ikegami Berkeley, CA: Creston Books, 2019. Picture book. In this wordless picture book, an alien visits Earth, makes friends with a little girl, and returns to his home planet to share his experiences. - Publisher We Are Definitely Human By X. Fang Toronto: Tundra Books, 2024. Picture book. When three mysterious visitors from "Europe" crash-land in Mr. Li's field, he does what any good host would: he invites them back to his farmhouse and offers to help fix up their "car". No, there's nothing strange about these guests at all. Just like other humans, they "make business", "play sportsball" and "wear hat". As the townsfolk also come to the aid of the visitors and the gathering turns into a little party, interplanetary relations reach an all-time high. - Publisher Greetings Floof! Written by C.J. Hong Illustrated by A.J. Smith Toronto: Kids Can Press, 2024. Picture book. Floof from planet Ploof has landed! And it...
Post a Comment
Read more