Celia Planted a Garden: The Story of Celia Thaxter and Her Island Garden

by Phyllis Root, Gary D. Schmidt, Melissa Sweet (Illustrator)

Overview

From an all-star team comes a lyrical picture-book biography about a writer and master gardener who created beauty in a harsh island habitat that was visited by literary and artistic luminaries of her time.

Celia Thaxter grew up on a desolate island off the coast of Maine, where her father worked as lighthouse keeper. Amid the white and gray of the sea, the rocks, and even the birds, young Celia found color where she could: green mosses and purple starfish and pink morning glories by the shore. And she planted her first garden, tucking bright marigolds between rocky ledges. When she was twelve, Celia’s family moved to nearby Appledore Island, where her father built a large hotel, and Celia planted a bigger, ever-growing garden with nearly sixty types of flowers, from asters to wisteria.

Guests flocked to the hotel from around the world, among them such writers as Longfellow, Whittier, and Hawthorne. Celia had been writing poems about the island, her garden, and the sea, and they would be printed in magazines and books, making her a foremother of writing about nature. Now, for the first time, Celia Planted a Garden showcases her life and work, in a poetic, vividly imagined picture book from a team of two authors and an illustrator, each recipients of numerous awards. More about Celia Thaxter, including a rich time line and bibliography, awaits readers in the back matter.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781536204292
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	05/17/2022
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	684,191
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 11.20(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	5 - 9 Years

About the Author

Phyllis Root is the award-winning author of more than forty children’s books, including the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winner Big Momma Makes the World, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury, and One Duck Stuck, illustrated by Jane Chapman. Phyllis Root lives in Minnesota.

Gary D. Schmidt is the author of two Newbery Honor Books, Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy and The Wednesday Wars, which also earned a Michael L. Printz Honor, as well as the National Book Award Finalist Okay for Now. He lives in Michigan.

Melissa Sweet is a New York Times best-selling author and has illustrated nearly one hundred children’s books. She has received numerous awards, including two Caldecott Honors, the Robert F. Sibert Medal, an Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children, and the Schneider Family Book Award. She lives in Maine.

Editorial Reviews

03/28/2022

Vivid nature writing infuses this picture book biography of New England artist and poet Celia Thaxter (1835–1894). The story opens with Thaxter’s rugged childhood at a lighthouse on White Island and her teen years on Appledore Island, where she installed a garden near her family’s hotel. After marriage takes Thaxter to the mainland, a longing (for “the tumbled shores of her island home, and the rising and falling tides, and the crash of the waves on the rocks”) inspires poetry and annual visits to Appledore for gardening. In mixed media, Sweet showcases florals on every page, weaving in quotes from Thaxter’s own writing. Largely eliding her artistic and writerly accomplishments, Root and Schmidt’s simplified portrait predominantly emphasizes the vibrant flowers Thaxter cultivated wherever she went. Back matter includes an author’s note, extensive timeline, and bibliography. Ages 5–9. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Root and Schmidt describe Celia’s seasonal activities with great admiration, carefully naming the flower and bird species to which she felt so deeply connected. Sweet’s lush, detailed watercolor, gouache, and mixed-media illustrations greatly enhance the text. . . . A splendid introduction to a lesser-known nature poet and the landscapes that inspired her.

—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

The quiet, precise text tells of a person who brought beauty to a barren place. . . Sweet’s vivid, beautifully crafted illustrations capture the story’s period setting and quiet, reflective subject. This handsome picture-book biography will resonate with those who love flower gardens and long for the sea.
—Booklist

Paired with the softness of watercolor and pencil lines within each image, the words and illustrations together create a visual tapestry that connects readers to [Thaxter's] colorful world. . . . Elementary school-aged readers will enjoy learning about a colorful and creative woman through this work.
—School Library Journal

Sweet’s illustrations follow the text’s lead. . . Thaxter’s devotion to her titular garden shines bright.
—The Horn Book

Vivid nature writing infuses this picture book biography of New England artist and poet Celia Thaxter (1835–1894). . . . In mixed media, Sweet showcases florals on every page, weaving in quotes from Thaxter’s own writing.
—Publishers Weekly

Celia Laughton Thaxter was a New England poet, artist, gardener, and nature lover. In this picture book biography, authors Root and Schmidt introduce young readers to the passion that Celia had for natural beauty.
—School Library Connection

Twin Cities writer Phyllis Root, author of more than 50 books for children, has teamed up with Newbery Honor winner Gary D. Schmidt in this inspiring biography of Celia. Melissa Sweet's watercolor, gouache and mixed-media collage illustrations depict the bountiful gardens, tender blossoms and raging sea to perfection.
—The Star Tribune

Melissa Sweet’s illustrations are delicate and graphically the book is a joy, with flowers, drawings of the town, a picture of Celia and her husband, all filling every page with energy.
—The St. Paul Pioneer Press

From the Publisher

06/01/2022

Gr 2–4—Island life in the northeastern United States can be colorless, as grays and whites cover not only the sky and sea but the animals, as well. Celia Thaxter grew up on just such an island, lamenting the limited color palette that surrounded her even while embracing the beauty and tumult of the sea. In response, Thaxter decided to craft a garden filled with vibrant and colorful flowers of many types to enhance the appearance of the island. And as her life took her to new places, she discovered ways to bring the beauty of her garden to paper through words and paint. This narrative biography introduces readers to a woman who was a renowned poet in her time. Rich paragraphs of text are used to tell her story, and these blocks often use repetition of color alongside specific references to myriad natural creatures. Snippets of Thaxter's poetry are placed alongside several of the images to enhance the text, and these words stand out dramatically from the others in both size and presentation. Paired with the softness of watercolor and pencil lines within each image, the words and illustrations together create a visual tapestry that connects readers to her colorful world. An author's note and time line of Thaxter's life help to round out the overall text and provide additional information for readers to peruse. VERDICT Elementary school-aged readers will enjoy learning about a colorful and creative woman through this work.—Mary R. Lanni

School Library Journal

★ 2022-03-02
Celia Laighton Thaxter loved the beauty of birds, flowers, and the ever changing sea.

Born in 1835, she grew up on two islands off the shores of Maine and New Hampshire. As a young child, she planted marigolds to brighten the gray and white landscape of rocks, waves, and clouds on White Island, where her father was the lightkeeper. When Celia was 12 years old, her family moved to Appledore Island, where her father opened a hotel that catered to artists and writers. There, Celia planted a new, bigger garden with flowers of many varieties. Married life brought her to the mainland, where she and her husband raised their family. Homesick, Celia painted pictures and wrote poems that captured her memories of island life, becoming a well-known, celebrated poet in her time. Every spring, year after year, she returned to Appledore Island to tend to her glorious garden. Using third-person narration, Root and Schmidt describe Celia’s seasonal activities with great admiration, carefully naming the flower and bird species to which she felt so deeply connected. Sweet’s lush, detailed watercolor, gouache, and mixed-media illustrations greatly enhance the text. Readers will be delighted to realize that the stylized handwritten words appearing in sidebars are Celia’s own lovely, heartfelt poems. All characters present White. Additional fascinating information about Laighton Thaxter is provided in the backmatter. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A splendid introduction to a lesser-known nature poet and the landscapes that inspired her. (additional facts, timeline, bibliography) (Picture-book biography. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews