By Élise Fontenaille & Violeta Lópiz
*** MARCH’S BOOK OF THE MONTH ***
This month we share a book full of love, nature, birds and words. We join our narrator with their grandfather, Luis in the garden he has created, a long with the cat and a host of birds. Through our narrator, as we wander through the garden we learn many wonderful things from Luis. A beautiful ode to growing, as well as words & wisdom from older relatives. Just like the natural world this book is lush and full of stunning beauty. We hope you enjoy this months pick!
With lush art by NYT Best Illustrated recipient Violeta Lopiz, a picture book about a boy and his larger-than-life immigrant grandfather, who shares with him the kind of learning that's not taught in classrooms. At six years old, the child-narrator of this picture book loves nothing more than spending time with his grandpa, Luis-especially in his marvelous garden, where green beans reach as high as the sky. Luis's garden is where the little boy practices reading and writing.
But just as importantly, it's also where he learns wonderful things from Luis, like the names of all the birds in the trees and new expressions that are so much fun to say. Luis's playful vocabulary is as vibrant and full of life as his garden, and phrases that are particular to his way of talking, like "at the drop of a cat" (which means right away), are soon adapted into the little boy's lexicon, too. A talented cook, artist, and gardener, Luis has much wisdom to impart and many experiences to share with his grandson-even though, as a war refugee, he never went to school himself and never learned to read and write.
A loving testament to the intergenerational transmission of knowledge and the breathtaking beauty of the natural world, illustrated with evocative, multilayered art by Violeta Lopiz.