| Title | : | The Seeds of Friendship |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1406356506 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781406356502 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 32 |
| Publication | : | First published March 1, 2015 |
The Seeds of Friendship Reviews
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Adam loves his new home in a high rise in the city, but he also misses his old home, and is a little shy of the new children who play near his building. When he sees them building a snowman after a storm, he joins them, and eventually they create an entire zoo out of snow. These new friends ease his transition in his new school, and join him when begins to plant seeds, given to him by his teacher, all over the city...
Part immigrant story - although the narrative never makes it explicit, it is clear from the animals Adam draws that his family come from Africa - and part urban garden story, The Seeds of Friendship is an engaging tale of a boy slowly adjusting to his new home and country. Although I was a little thrown off by the rapidity with which the seasons change in the story - in a matter of days (according to the text), the snowstorm disappears and a summer-time garden is growing - otherwise I found this a believable and poignant story of the immigrant experience, and of making friendships across cultural and national lines. Michael Foreman's watercolor artwork is lovely and engaging, complementing the story nicely. Recommended to anyone looking for positive, upbeat stories about immigrant children, or about making urban spaces greener. -
The title is The Seeds of Friendship, but I don't get it since that is not what the story was about, at least not to me. I liked that the characters created a city of gardens, but other than that this book lost me.
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What a beautiful book with a strong message. I could use this book to compare city to rural life, I can also use it to talk about the importance of plants. I can also talk about what it is to be a leader. there are so many lessons to be taught. I will definitely be reading this to my class.
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An interesting story about a young boy moving to a new city that doesn't look like his old home (somewhere with a forest and wild animals) as it is all grey and doesn't look very friendly. He meets new people who together find a way of bringing the greenery and wildlife back to this new city.
This is a lovely story which can show the reader the importance of protecting nature and allowing the thrive in our cities as it really can help to brighten not just the surroundings but people's moods. -
Pair this one with The Curious Garden.
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As I read this book, I was reminded not to judge a book by its cover. While I like the idea of planting seeds of friendship, I found that this book instead planted seeds of stereotypes. We are introduced to Adam, a boy with brown skin from a "faraway place." The assumption is that given his skin color, drawings, and his mother's clothing that he is from "Africa." Pictures of elephants, hippos, and monkeys combined with snow animals including camels, crocs and rhinos reinforce stereotypes of a vague, anonymous African continent instead of celebrating a specific country or culture. The children that Adam meets in his new city and school are, for the most part, white and homogeneous. While Adam and his friends grow a bright and beautiful garden, the author and illustrator missed an opportunity to share the "wonders and colors" of a vibrant city.
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The cover tells me so much. Michael Foreman's title reveals that this book is going to be about friendship. In addition, that cover art shows us more about what will likely be most distinctive about this story.
The hero, holding a plant, is standing apart from the other children. They parade by in the background, looking at him, but far away from him. All those other children are walking along with at least one other kid. While this boy stands alone.
Besides that aspect of the cover art, this boy is clearly sensitive. Seems to me, he might be a Highly Sensitive Person or even an empath. And, for sure, he has a strong inner life: As you Goodreaders may have noticed, this isn't necessarily true of people past their preschool years.
Now I'm ready to turn the page, and find out if my first impression was true, even relevant to the story shaped by Michael Foreman.
HMMM, THE FIRST PAGES ESTABLISH ALL THAT
Besides being sensitive and shy, where did the hero, Adam, used to live? Not in a big, gray city, that's for sure. So he's got some discoveries to make -- pleasant ones, I hope.
BUILDING A HUGE SNOW ELEPHANT?
Together with some neighbor children, the hero, Adam did just that.
Pretty amazing, especially given that this was his first snowfall ever, now that he'd moved to this city along with his family.
AND THOSE SEEDS OF FRIENDSHIP, THROUGH ADAM'S NEW TEACHER AT SCHOOL, WOW!
Wait until you see what those kids did, absolutely wonderful!
I was also impressed with what Adam's mom did with those seeds. (My NY mother was wonderful in many ways, but she never would have planted a single seed.)
Also, the ending here is absolutely wonderful. Altogether, what a magnificent, cheering book this is... especially for children moving to a new school, or otherwise not quite sure if they'll ever fit in.
Thank you, artist and illustrator Michael Foreman. -
A book that gently shows how friendships can grow over time, even if this appears challenging to start with.
I really like how the colours get brighter as the story shows Adam's friendships blossoming. Initially most of the colours are a grey and dreary with a 'inner city' urban feel. In the story this also represents how Adam is feeling about moving to their new home and trying to make friends with the other children in the area. As Adam begins to interact with these children, and make friends, the colours begin to brighten in the book. As the friendships grow the colours get brighter and this happens as the children work together on a more regular basis to plant the seeds they have brought home from school. At the end of the story Adam seems a lot happier in their new home and has made some friends from school who he also played in the snow with...at the same time the pages at the end are full of colour.
In this story the turning point occurs during the snow and then again, as the months passed, when the gardens grew and grew. Alongside this Adam's friendships blossomed more and more which could show the reader how friendships can keep on growing throughout the months and seasons. -
The Seeds of Friendship by Michael Foreman- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- The book narrates the story Adam who parents shift to a Multi-story building. Here Adam feels lonely. Earlier he resided in a place open to nature. Adam draws pictures of birds and pet animals on the walls of the room. Next season is winter. Adam views snowfall. Children come out of their houses, prepare a snowman and play snow games. Third, season is opening of schools. Adam is admitted to school. Adam meets new friends and teachers. One teacher understands Adam’s coming to a new place. This teacher gives Adam seeds to be planted in pots and boxes placed outside the window. Teacher gives an idea to Adam that loneliness can be reduced by meeting friends, exchanging ideas, planting plants and drawing their pictures. Coloured pictures and illustrations help the reader to relate to the story. Message- Friendship helps children get away from loneliness. I have read the Hindi language translation of this book.
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Beautiful story following Adam’s new arrival living in a grey dull city and how he misses his previous home full of animals and nature. The story touches themes such as seasons when Adam experiences snow for the first time and how he builds friendships with the children in his community. When he starts school for the first time he is draw to the small school garden. The story then follows his desire to grow a rooftop garden where he lives to add colour and life, with his friends being inspired they join to create a community of gardens in their city.
A lovely story touching on the importance of friendship, hope, community and social responsibility. -
Hmm! I like this in theory, and a few of the pages are great, but it felt a little meandering and all over the place. Like, the snow section would have been good as its own story, and the garden section would have been good as its own story, and maybe they both could have worked in one book if the seasons had cycled back around at the end. But as it is, it feels a little confused, and none of the protagonist's new friends have names or distinct traits, so it doesn't reeeeally feel like he made any. Also seems to be a case of: white author, well-intentioned but poorly-developed character of color.
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This is the story of a young immigrant boy who misses his colorful home compared to his gray surroundings, but gets an idea on how to change it when his teacher gives him some seeds. I think the idea behind the story is nice, but the execution is kind of "meh."
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We all liked this, but I thought the switch between winter and spring felt a bit too abrupt. The story could have used a better bridge between the parts where Adam was a bit lonely and homesick and then he suddenly had friends.
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A lovely book portraying some real issues children may face having moved from other countries to the UK
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Uplifting story about an immigrant boy making friends and brightening his neighborhood with gardens.
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This book tries to do too many things at once, and so instead of one idea being spectacularly told, they are a bunch that are just okay. It is a nice, if unrealistic, story. Not bad, just not great.
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A lovely story of a boy who moves into the big city. He sees snow for the first time. He misses the animals from his hometown but ends up making friends with the kids in his neighbourhood.
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Pretty nifty.
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This book tried to do too many things and ended up missing the mark on all of them. A clearer focus would have been a benefit.
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Soft watercolor illustrations and simple text combine to tell a story of hope for the future and an acknowledgement that change begins in small ways. Although it's nothing like his former home, Adam enjoys the highrise apartment in which he lives. Nevertheless, he expresses his loneliness and longing through drawings, even using the frost on the window panes as his canvas. When snow falls, he ventures outdoors and builds a small elephant from the snow while the other children build the usual snowman. Before he knows it, he's been joined by the other children who add other animals from a much warmer climate to the frozen menagerie. Not only has Adam made new friends in the neighborhood but some of them attend his school. Later, he and his mother plant the seeds his teacher gives him in the apartment's window boxes. The school community garden provides more seeds and plants that end up as part of a rooftop garden that spreads all over the landscape that Adam can see. I especially appreciated how the author depicts children alongside some adults who are making a difference in the world and the replacement of drab grays with living greens. Originally published in the United Kingdom, this picture book reminds readers that great things often start off small and that they can have a positive impact on the world around them. In a world with drabness, that message is sorely needed.
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Ok, this book is so messed up that I don't even know where to start.
The author probably had good intentions. Probably.
But this is such a HOT MESS! Let's get started: 1. did our main character live inside a jungle? in Africa? (probably not), but we have no idea really where he is from until we see his mom walking him to school and even then much guessing goes on; 2. mc has supposedly never seen snow before, yet he knows to put on boots (!) and a jacket; 3. mc goes out into the snow and knows immediately (!) how to make something out of the snow; 4. when other children threw a snowball at mc, it came across as mean, NOT playful; 5. IMMEDIATELY, the snow melts and the children go to school where there is a GREEN garden with a palm tree growing it it...WHAT the WHAT?! If it snowed that long and hard, then there would have been puddles, slush, melting and that garden wouldn't be looking so green. The weather here makes NO sense; 6. the teacher gives the seeds to mc--not the friends--but anyway, he is able to plant them immediately (nevermind the previous day's weather) and these magical gardens grow EVERYWHERE.
Just suspend all disbelief--and brain functions really--if you are going to read this book. -
Talking about afterward immigration without making it sound "immigration". Only parts readers can tell Adam is from other countires is because of pictures he drew that shows his previous place, which is expressed as "the faraway place where he used to live" and " he asked his mom and dad to read him stroies that brough back memories of their old home" and the snow that Adam saw it for the first time in this new place. He makes friends over snow man, snow animal making time. At school he gets seeds and eventually turns his gray-look apartment into a city forest that he started from his balcony garden.
It is a beautiful story to construct a new relationship with new friends in the new school and community. I wonder though, his drawings to tell stories from old home only have images of animals and tropical vegitations.. He could have had people, friends, community, city etc as part of stories of old places.. certain images on African villagers' portrayal.. -
This book is talked a boy moved to new place, but he misses his plants and animals from his old home. One day, his teacher gives him some seeds, and his friends and he is gathering together and begin to grow plants around the city. I feel like this story helps students to understand that moving to a new place may difficult but there is more things to look forward. Building up new relationship with new friends in the new community may be hard to students, but educators should be more supportive to them. The illustrations are presented his old home and new home. They used images of animals and tropical plants to represent the old home, and snow, apartments, and city to represent his new place.
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Adam moves to a city and misses the plants and animals from his old home. Winter brings opportunities to make friends and build snow animals so when school starts Adam feels more at home.
In class, Adam is lucky enough to be gifted seeds by his teacher such that he and his friends can turn their community into a city of gardens.
Put this on the shelf next to Brown's The Curious Garden. Love it!
Watercolor artwork. PreK-2. -
This book follows Adam as he tries to get used to life in the city. Presumably he is from Africa (judging by the pictures he draws of home), and has a hard time being surrounded by buildings and snow. When spring comes, his teacher gives him a handful of seeds. With this, Adam and his friends begin to plant rooftop gardens around the city. They reuse abandoned space to create lush gardens. Great story of friendships and life blossoming anew.
