All That Grows

by Jack Wong

Overview

From Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winner Jack Wong, a story of a boy who discovers that the more he learns, the more there is to know!

On their neighborhood walks together, a boy learns from his older sister all about the plants they see — magnolias that smell like lemon cake, creeping weeds that used to be planted for decoration, and even how dandelion greens can be eaten with spaghetti! But what makes a plant a flower, vegetable or weed, anyway? How can his sister tell, and how does she know so much?

The boy’s head spins as he realizes how vast the universe is and how much there is to learn … until he resolves to let his knowledge grow in its own way and time, just like the mysterious plants he has decided to nurture in the garden.

Award-winning creator Jack Wong brings us a delightful, nuanced story about cultivating patience and letting knowledge grow.

Key Text Features

dialogue

illustrations

Correlates to the Common Core States Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.2

Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4

Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7

Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781773068121
Publisher:	Groundwood Books
Publication date:	03/05/2024
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	10.50(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	3 - 6 Years

About the Author

JACK WONG (黃雋喬) was born in Hong Kong and raised in Vancouver, BC. He left a career as a bridge engineer to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts at NSCAD Universityin Kjipuktuk/Halifax, NS. All That Grows owes to all of the above — to taking a leap to learn new things, and to the sanctuary of big neighborhood walks in a small city, especially during the first spring of the pandemic. Jack is also the creator of the national bestseller When You Can Swim, winner of the Governor General's Literary Award and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award.

Editorial Reviews

12/18/2023

Wearing a serious expression, the narrator of this story about cultivation and categorization learns about plants from their older sister, who seems to retain all manner of related knowledge: “How does my sister know?” Told that magnolias smell like lemon cake, and quince trees only produce sweet fruit in warmer climes, the narrator helps their sister weed the plot in which she’s growing vegetables (“It’s hard work not to mistake one for the other”). Warm, dappled pastel art by Wong (When You Can Swim) captures sunlight playing over the East Asian–cued siblings as they tend the seedlings. Wondering why “only some plants are called vegetables,” the narrator keeps watering a thickly weeded patch that their sister has given up on; notes the value of wild-propagated daffodils, dandelions, and maples; and enjoys cooked fiddlehead ferns, which will “make you sick for days if you have them raw.” One day, white flowers that the sister has never before seen appear in the weedy patch, an occasion that vindicates the idea that the narrator, too, is a gardener. Played out through quiet internality, the narrator’s questioning curiosity, and the discovery they make while trusting their own intuition, provides quiet satisfaction. Ages 3–6. Agent: Wendi Gu, Sanford J. Greenburger Assoc. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Wong's lush pastel illustrations are part of the magic of a picture book that will especially delight young gardeners.

Globe and Mail

A delicate but powerful ode to curiosity and the delights to be found in the natural world. STARRED REVIEW

BookPage

A gentle story that encourages readers to engage with their own surroundings and discover the place they inhabit.

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

Wong's pastel pictures are large and expansive.

Winnipeg Free Press

With every page-turn, Wong's exquisite synchronicity of words and art create a welcoming wonderland to explore and appreciate.

Shelf Awareness

Beautifully illustrated.

Montreal Gazette

A charming picture book ... Wong's illustrations are tender and dreamlike. STARRED REVIEW

Quill & Quire

A celebration of nature and of a ­loving sibling bond.

Horn Book

★ 03/01/2024

PreS-Gr 2—Dreamy, earth-toned pastel drawings and quiet, spare text are used to great effect in this lovely book about a boy's curiosity and wonder about the natural world. A boy and his older sister, both with brown skin, are shown walking around their neighborhood smelling magnolia blossoms, admiring a quince tree, and gathering a bunch of daffodils. Then it's off to her garden to weed out the crabgrass and clover, while leaving the fledgling vegetable sprouts to continue growing. Through it all, the boy wonders why some plants are vegetables, some flowers, and others weeds, and how his sister knows so much. (When they encounter an unknown plant, the sister offers to look it up in one of her books—a novelty in this digital age!) The pictures are almost cinematic, as the point of view changes from page to page: the characters are shown from above, below, up-close, far away, and as shadowy outlines in one spread, perhaps reflecting the boy's journey from wonder to experience. A delightful addition to any library's collection, perfect for those with an interest in plants and gardening. VERDICT A thought-provoking book about the joys of the natural world, with a sprinkling of kid-friendly philosophy; this gentle book could be slipped into the gardening shelves or left out for browsers as curious as the main characters.—Sue Morgan

School Library Journal

★ 2024-01-20
A child learns to share a love of plants and gardening with an older sister.

Two siblings stroll past lemon cake–scented magnolias, budding quince trees, and blooming daffodils in early spring. The children tend the garden, and as the older sister shares more nuggets of information, such as how wild dandelion can be eaten with spaghetti, the young narrator listens earnestly. But the more the child learns, the more questions emerge, and the child lies awake at night overwhelmed with thoughts. Why are only some plants called vegetables, and what makes some of them flowers and others weeds? How does the child’s older sister know so much? When an experiment in the garden leads to a discovery that stumps big sis, the child gains a sense of ownership and confidence as a gardener. The hopeful ending provides quiet reassurance to curious beginners daunted by the unknown. Wong’s impressive command of color, light, and shadow in his textured pastel illustrations makes each scene thrum with life. Readers can almost feel the sunlight on their skin and hear the busy sounds of a fertile springtime garden. The protagonist’s thoughtful musings are bound to spark further curiosity in readers as they examine their own observations and ideas about the natural world. The characters present East Asian.

A gentle and meditative origin story of a budding young gardener. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews