Good Things Grow Little by Little in “Gracie’s Garden”

Gracie’s Garden, written by Lara Casey of Cultivate What Matters, opens with a sweet picture of siblings Gracie, Joshua, and Sarah enjoying a couple of the delightful things about growing a garden: carrots and dirt! Gracie, with the help of Nutty the squirrel, explains to Joshua and Sarah how tomato seeds grow little by little, from “teeny tiny specks” (pg. 10) to “tomatoes for you to eat” (pg.23). Gracie, Joshua, and Sarah learn how to wait patiently for their plants to grow and finally celebrate their full-grown tomatoes at the end with “the happiest tomato dance you ever did see” (pg.32).

My children thoroughly enjoy Gracie’s Garden. Since I received the book a few days ago, we’ve read it multiple times, multiple times a day. They especially like the colorful illustrations, the funny things Gracie, Joshua, and Sarah say, and the cute animals they get to know during the story. Sarah, the youngest of the three siblings, has a little pet bunny that she carries around. My kids felt slightly disappointed that Sarah’s little bunny friend doesn’t have a name while the other animals do, so we affectionately named him “Bun-bun.” We like to point out what Bun-bun does in each picture, along with Gracie, Joshua, Sarah, Nutty, and Fluffy Kitty (a kitty).

I like the lively feel of the story. I get the sense that Gracie, Joshua, and Sarah like to explore and have fun. They energetically go from activity to activity, talking with each other, learning from each other, and enjoying each other’s company. I think my kids would like to play with them if they ever met children like them in real life. What a blessing to meet excellent new friends in stories, too.

I do have a couple small issues with the book, and they are so, so small I considered not mentioning them at all. This, however, is an honest review, so I will be honest and straightforward. I wasn’t too keen about how Mrs. Casey used the word ‘miracle’ or the word ‘magic’ to illustrate how a seed grows.

Being someone with a strong science background, I love seeing the natural order in the world God created. Even though God still grows every plant we see on the earth, He grows them by the means He placed inside of them–their unique genetic code, stored in a seed. A miracle goes beyond science into the realm of the supernatural. We have no scientific explanation for miracles, which makes them all the more wonderful and should cause us to look to God in praise and adoration. Mrs. Casey defines a miracle as when “something so wonderful happens that you can’t explain it because it’s so amazing” (pg. 12). We can explain how a seed grows–it’s still a wonderful and amazing process, but not exactly a miracle. Jesus performed true miracles. He healed the sick, made the blind to see, and caused the lame to walk. These miracles had no scientific explanation whatsoever. They were just the majesty and glory of God on full display for His own sake and the sake of His people–those who knew Him and those who would come to know Him as well.

As far as the term ‘magic’ goes, I think Mrs. Casey simply misses out on a great opportunity to explain something amazing about God. God doesn’t use magic to grow a seed, He uses His great wisdom and unsurpassable power. He sovereignly reigns over all of His creation, and He does this with care and love for the world He created. Right now we’re studying Psalm 104 during Family Worship. This verse came to mind as I read Gracie’s Garden: “You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth” (v.14). Psalm 104 also says: “O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures” (v.24). I think Mrs. Casey could have improved the book by illustrating how God uses His wisdom, power, love, and care to grow good things for us to eat.

Overall, the book provides children with a sweetly-illustrated, bright and colorful, fast-paced story about kids just like them learning about how things grow best little by little. With a little bit of extra explaining by Mrs. Casey, I think the book would be a perfect read for those of us who love to be outside in our gardens and want to bring our children along on our plant-growing adventures.

Thank you to B&H Publishing for providing me with a free copy of Gracie’s Garden in exchange for an honest review.