Over Under in the Garden

Children's Literature - Judy Katsh

At first glance, this is a sumptuous picture book whose full-page, full-color paintings introduce readers to lush garden plants and their insect companions in alphabetical order. A second, more careful study reveals a dramatic understory, one that features a chipmunk engaged in an ongoing struggle for survival. It's an elegant way to look at both the alphabet and the natural world.

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2Visually striking, this garden alphabet presents a fruit or vegetable and an insect on each page. Despite the handsome design and lush, full-color art, the book is nonetheless a watering can that comes up dry. It will appeal visually to youngsters, but the text, which consists solely of the names of flora and fauna, lacks child appeal altogether. Each page is adorned by a chipmunk, pursued at times by a fierce, fanged snake. Factually, the book is misleading, as spring-flowering plants are presented contiguously with fall-harvested crops, and the chipmunk romps through all. The title's "under" is misleading as well, since most of the bugs shown live well above ground. Though this title would be a more appropriate addition as a picture book than as nonfiction, it fails to inform or engage in either function. Rather, the striking artwork would be more effective hung on the wall to be enjoyed. For a playful picture-book bouquet, choose Arnold and Anita Lobel's The Rose in My Garden (Greenwillow, 1984).Carolyn Noah, Central Mass. Regional Library System, Worcester, MA