Book picks similar to
The Gardener's Surprise by Carla Balzaretti


picture-books
historical-fiction
picture-book
children-s

Shin's Tricycle


Tatsuharu Kodama - 1995
    Shin's uncle is able to get him the impossible: the tricycle he desperately wants. He is riding the wonderful, brand-new tricycle when the atom bomb is dropped. Shin is found in the rubble, holding on to his treasure. He dies later that day, ten days before his fourth birthday. The tricycle now sits in the Peace Museum in Hiroshima.

Mr. Happy and Miss Grimm


Antonie Schneider - 2013
    Happy has just moved in next door, and Miss Grimm is not pleased. Mr. Happy greets the sun each day, works tirelessly in his spectacular garden, and even whistles to the birds. So much for peace and quiet! From her gloomy and barren side of the fence, Miss Grimm knows one thing for certain: she wants nothing to do with Mr. Happy. But Mr. Happy knows something too: given kindness and patience, anything can grow--even a friendship with lonely Miss Grimm.

Farty Marty


B.J. Ward - 2013
    He is catapulted to fame and a world tour soon follows from London to Shanghai, and before long Marty’s tunes top the bestseller charts!With playful text on a favorite funny topic and whimsical illustrations in Steven Kellogg’s trademark style, Farty Marty is a book to enjoy again and again!

The Magic Hat Shop


Sonja Wimmer - 2016
    A delightful tale about magic hats and bonnets, but above all about the importance about being yourself and the hidden treasures we carry within us.Guided Reading Level O.

Welcome to Bobville: City of Bobs


Jonah Winter - 2020
     Welcome to Bobville, home to people only named Bob! In Bobville, the Bobs eat the same food, wear the same clothes, watch the same movies, and have the same hobbies. They agree on everything-- ESPECIALLY that they don't like anyone who isn't named Bob. The Bobs go about their Bob ways, until one day, to the surprise of the entire city, one resident decides he wants to do things a little differently, and live as Bruce. In response, the Bobs build a wall to keep Bruce, and anyone else who dares to be different, out of the city. But Bruce doesn't mind-- it turns out the diverse world outside of Bobville is actually very beautiful. In this timely picture book, bestselling author Jonah Winter and acclaimed illustrator Bob Staake explore how exclusion and walls breed intolerance, and how being different and open-minded enriches our lives and the world.

There's a Pig in My Class!


Johanna Thydell - 2012
    A lonely pig dressed and disguised as a student sneaks into school where he enjoys lunchtime and making new friends in this story that expands on the definition of inclusion.

The Magical Garden of Claude Monet


Laurence Anholt - 2003
    Julie is pleased when her mother decides to take her to visit the most wonderful garden in the world, owned by a great friend of the family. They arrive at their destination, and for this little girl it is like walking in a dreamy world where twisting plants grow as tall as trees. When Julie's dog runs away, she asks the gardener to help find her pet, and soon she and the gardener are friends. But this amiable, bearded old man is a very unusual gardener, for not only does he cultivate his many plants, he also paints beautiful pictures of them. Julie has made a friend of the great impressionist painter, Claude Monet. Based on a true story about the daughter of another fine artist, Berthe Morisot, this charmingly illustrated picture book includes reproductions by author-illustrator Laurance Anholt of a famous waterlilies painting, which Monet completed in his garden at Giverny, a few miles from Paris.

Captain Beastlie's Pirate Party


Lucy Coats - 2014
    Captain Beastlie is eagerly counting down the days till his birthday – but what he doesn’t know is his crew has got a special secret lined up for the Big Event. His days of being the smelliest, dirtiest pirate ever are numbered, and when Captain Beastlie’s birthday finally comes, he’s in for a big surprise...

The Willow Pool


Elizabeth Elgin - 2000
    But before Meg can take her first steps into the unknown alone, she must look to her past. Why, she wonders, did her mother wear a wedding ring but never marry? Why, for instance, does the tallyman never call at No. 3 Tippet's Yard to collect any rent? He does everywhere else. With Ma gone, Meg must go back to her roots to uncover her 'family tree'. However, the process of simplfying her life leads to unforseen complications. But there's always Kip, reliable and loving, to pick up the pieces of her unsolved life and love.

Mom, Dad, Our Books, and Me


Danielle Marcotte - 2016
    Some of us read novels, while others read cookbooks, sheet music, tarot cards, or even the stars in the sky. We read clocks, train schedules, and facial expressions. In this ode to reading, each form is lovely and worth celebrating. Mom, Dad, Our Books, and Me follows a young boy and those around him — parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and neighbors — as they all read, immersed in what moves them. Vibrant, whimsical paper collage artwork depicts the colors and textures of the many places in which we read, from hammocks and bubble baths to park benches and waiting rooms. The diverse cityscapes and landscapes often include fanciful elements of imagination.Mom, Dad, Our Books, and Me will leave young readers reveling in this newfound or soon-to-come skill that sparks new adventures and brings people together.

Francis, the Little Fox


Veronique Boisjoly - 2012
    Li's Laundromat, except for Mr. Li's granddaughter, Lily. When Lily plays a dirty trick on Francis, it's up to the little fox to clean up and save the day.

Grace Banker and Her Hello Girls Answer the Call: The Heroic Story of WWI Telephone Operators


Claudia Friddell - 2021
    With expert skill, steady nerves, and steadfast loyalty, the Signal Corps operators transferred orders from commanders to battlefields and communicated top-secret messages between American and French headquarters. After faithfully serving her country--undaunted by freezing weather and fires; long hours and little sleep, and nearby shellings and far off explosions--Grace was the first and only woman operator in the Signal Corps to be awarded the Army's Distinguished Service Medal.

He Has Shot the President!: April 14, 1865: The Day John Wilkes Booth Killed President Lincoln


Don Brown - 2014
    In He Has Shot the President! both Lincoln and Booth emerge as vivid characters, defined by the long and brutal Civil War, and set on a collision course toward tragedy. With his characteristic straightforward storytelling voice and dynamic water color illustration, Don Brown gives readers a chronological account of the events and also captures the emotion of the death of America's greatest president.

The Paper Boat: A Refugee Story


Thao Lam - 2020
    At her home in Vietnam, a girl rescues ants from the sugar water set out to trap them. Later, when the girl’s family flees war-torn Vietnam, ants lead them through the moonlit jungle to the boat that will take them to safety. Before boarding, the girl folds a paper boat from a bun wrapper and drops it into the water, and the ants climb on. Their perilous journey, besieged by punishing weather, predatory birds, and dehydration, before reaching a new beginning, mirrors the family’s own. Impressionistic collages and a moving, Own Voices narrative make this a one-of-a-kind tale of courage, resilience, and hope.

Sea Prayer


Khaled Hosseini - 2018
    Watching over his sleeping son, the father reflects on the dangerous sea-crossing that lies before them. It is also a vivid portrait of their life in Homs, Syria, before the war, and of that city's swift transformation from a home into a deadly war zone. Impelled to write this story by the haunting image of young Alan Kurdi, the three-year-old Syrian boy whose body washed upon the beach in Turkey in September 2015, Hosseini hopes to pay tribute to the millions of families, like Kurdi's, who have been splintered and forced from home by war and persecution, and he will donate author proceeds from this book to the UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency) and The Khaled Hosseini Foundation to help fund lifesaving relief efforts to help refugees around the globe. Hosseini is also a Goodwill Envoy to the UNHCR, and the founder of The Khaled Hosseini Foundation, a nonprofit that provides humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.