The Little Gardener

Author: Emily Hughes
Illustrator: Emily Hughes
Publisher: Flying Eye Books

“It was a flower. It was alive and wonderful. It gave the gardener hope and it made
him work even harder.”

Once there was a little gardener who lived in his garden. The garden meant everything to him. He was not very good at gardening, but he worked very hard to take care of his garden. There was only only problem: he was too little. He was on the verge of giving up, but then he saw a beautiful flower. It made him work harder every day and every night. Despite his efforts, the garden slowly started dying. He desperately wanted help.

The following day, someone walked by the garden and noticed the flower. It was a young girl. She was filled with the same hope as the little gardener upon seeing the flower. She and her friend tended to the garden, while the little gardener was in hibernation. When he awoke, he was delighted to his garden alive and well. He realises that his garden cares about him as much as he cares about his garden. The illustrations are magical, dark, irregular, and lush, depicting different shades of green. The essence of the story is conveyed through the illustrations. The rhythmic narration of the story in concise and precise language will be striking to young readers.

The messages we found in this book:

Acknowledgement:

The gardener in the story knows his limitations. He knows he is not very good at gardening. He wishes he had someone to help save his garden from dying. In the
end, he also realises that he and the garden cannot survive without the other. He needs the garden for food and shelter and the garden needs him to nurture it.

Hope & Inspiration:

The story focuses on perseverance and transformation: little things can make a big difference. The red flower is a symbol of hope to the little gardener and the young children. It makes them work harder to take care of the garden.
The picture book depicts an eco-conscious protagonist. The little gardener’s garden inspires two young children to clean and nurture the garden. The story can help
children to understand the connection between humans and nature and the importance of environmental conservation. It can inspire them to take action against environmental destruction.