A 'Seed' that takes root in your heart

A Seed is Sleepy
By Dianna Hutts Aston, illustrated by Sylvia Long

Reviewed by Kelly Herold

Sometimes a book is so lovely, it is difficult to review. You just want to throw a bunch of words out, like, “stunning,” “superb,” “gorgeous,” and “accomplished.”  There.  I’m done. No? Okay, then, on with the review.

Dianna Hutts Aston and Sylvia Long team up again after their Cybils Non-Fiction Award-winning An Egg is Quiet.  Now I know what all the fuss is about.  Aston takes a non-fiction topic and turns it into a lyrical work of genius.  In A Seed is Sleepy the seed is the topic du jour.  Now we’ve all read a non-fiction title or two about seeds.  But Aston’s genius is taking the mundane and making it beautiful.  Take the opening page, for example:

A seed is sleepy.

It lies there, tucked inside its flower,
or its cone, or beneath the soil. Snug. Still.

Rendered in open, easy-to-read cursive, these lines are pure poetry and set the frame for the book.  Each double-page spread begins with a similar seed statement and Dianna Hutts Aston’s choices are always unexpected.  My favorite is “A seed is inventive” and is followed by:

To find a spot to grow,
A seed might leap from its pod,
[violet]
or cling to a
child’s shoestring,
[cocklebur]
or tumble through
a bear’s belly.
[Red huckleberry]
A seed hopes to land where
there is plenty of
sunlight, soil, and water.

Sylvia Long’s ink and watercolor illustrations are worthy of any nineteenth-century illustrated nature classic.  Full color and lush, you want to snip each one out and make a gorgeous collage until you remember you’d destroy this amazing book.

A Seed is Sleepy will be enjoyed by children of all ages and all tastes.  The story fan will appreciate Aston’s way with words, while the non-fiction freak will relish the information presented.  And the best news?  Parents won’t be bored reading this one aloud, either.

Starstruck, maybe.  But never bored.

Rating: *\*\*\*\

The author and illustrator previously won a 2006 Cybils for Best Non-Fiction Picture Book.

Comments

[Susan]

Kelly, I loved An Egg Is Quiet, so I will have to seek out this new one. Thanks for the review.

[Kelly]

Susan: This one is GREAT. Junior should love it too. My Eli said after we read it "we're going to keep this one right?"

[Camille]

How I loved their first book. Sounds exquisite!

[Sylvia Long]

Dear Kelly,
What a nice surprise! I'm just coming up for air after meeting a tight book deadline and thought I'd 'google' to see if Seed is Sleepy had been discovered yet. Thank you So much for your thoughtful review and high praise. It's very encouraging! My best to Sylvia Long

[Sylvia Long]

oops - a typo. I meant to say "My best to Kelly!"

[Kelly]

You're welcome, Sylvia. I love these books. Thanks for stopping by Book Buds!