NAPRA ReView - May 1, 2000
"The honesty and compassion of Spalding's tale will touch yound readers, while Wilson's sensitive and eloquent watercolors capture the special feeling of this intergenerational friendship."
Booklist - April 1, 2000
"The story deals with the ideas of separation and loss in a gentle but understandable way that children will immediately grasp."
School Library Journal - March 1, 2000
"Each pleasing watercolor painting...spills across to the opposite page."
"This title should be considered for collections needing material on intergenerational or interracial relationships."
Foreword Magazine - January 1, 2000
"Artist Janet Wilson brings Andrea Spalding's story to life with her richly saturated water color style. All ages will enjoy the heartwarming tale of two drastically different people coming together in the bond of friendship. The writing of this warm, multi-cultural tale is easy enough for beginners to master and will provide enjoyment for the whole family."
Times Colonist - December 19, 1999
" . . . a sweet story of a displaced boy who finds a lush oasis and happiness i a neighbour's garden."
The Observer - December 1, 1999
"Grief and sadness can transcend cultural barriers."
Kirkus Reviews - December 1, 1999
"A quietly meaningful story."
" Offers seeds of tenderness."
"This sensitive book is mindful of all the senses."
"Wilson's illustrations are...attentive, conjuring the mood of the story, and the motions and colors found in the garden."
The Barnacle Island Journal - September 28, 1999
"Janet Wilson's vivid paintings add life and colour to the story. They fit perfectly with the text . . ."
Canadian Book Review Annual - April 1, 1999
"This lovely story, told in the first person, is a bittersweet tale about how people survive upheaval and change in their lives by linking their past to their future. Janet Wilson's beautiful picture panels, which are dominated by huge nodding sunflowers and swirling earth tones, perfectly complement Andrea Spalding's gentle prose. Recommended."
Resource Links - April 1, 1999
" . . . a moving story of a young boy, undergoing the stress of his parent's separation and eventually divorce."
Ruminator Review - April 1, 1999
"Spalding's story nicely connects characters from different generations and cultures."
Canadian Literature - January 1, 1999
" . . . the growing proximity between boy and man is beautifully captured in the parallel narratives of text and image."