Plants Feed Me

by Lizzy Rockwell

Overview

Sink your teeth into the plants that feed the world—flowers, fruits, seeds, and all!

With its simple text and bright, appealing illustrations, this book is perfect for young readers learning about where their food comes from. 

Clearly-labeled diagrams show the different parts of plants we use and eat—leaves of spinach and cabbage, the roots of carrot plants, and the wide variety of fruits, such as apples, berries, and tomatoes. Plants Feed Me explores the different types of seeds we eat— beans, nuts, rice, and even how wheat is ground into flour and used to make many other types of food. 

Smiling children pick fruits and vegetables, and learn how plants grow from seeds, stretching toward the sky for sun and into the earth for nutrients. This celebration of fruits, vegetables, and more is sure to get kids interested in what's on their plates!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823433070
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	01/15/2015
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	7.60(w) x 9.80(h) x 0.10(d)
Lexile:	320L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 6 Years

About the Author

Lizzy Rockwell is the illustrator of more than twenty children's books by a variety of authors, including her mother, Anne Rockwell. She is both the author and the illustrator of three books, including an ALA Booklist Editor's Choice. She lives in Connecticut.

Editorial Reviews

"Straightforward text and clear, well-labeled, pleasing illustrations make this a useful introduction to botany."—The Horn Book
 
"In a celebration of growing (and eating) fresh vegetables and fruit, Rockwell's glossy digital artwork depicts upbreat children plucking apples, picking tomatoes, planting seeds, and watering gardens. . . . Rockwell treats each vegetable like a treasure; even kids with aversions to veggies may be intrigued."—Publishers Weekly
 
"The short, declarative sentences are easily digested by the very youngest and will tempt burgeoning readers to test their skills. Best of all, children will surely be inspired to taste some of the produce the next time it appears on their plates. Delicious on its own, and it will pair well with other books about gardens, plants, and healthy eating habits."—Kirkus Reviews
 
"This gentle, colorful picture book explains, simply and accurately, how food gets from the garden and farm onto dining-room tables."—Booklist
 
"Vivid and detailed gouache and colored-pencil-on-paper illustrations fill each page, and many of the pictures are actually large diagrams with labels and captions that complement the facts described. Though the text is simple and straightforward, it's perfect for developing readers."—School Library Journal
 
A Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year

From the Publisher

02/03/2014
In a celebration of growing (and eating) fresh vegetables and fruit, Rockwell’s glossy digital artwork depicts upbeat children plucking apples, picking tomatoes, planting seeds, and watering gardens. A cross-section of a garden bed shows plants like asparagus, onion, parsnip, and beets, their roots fanning down into the soil; other pages focus on fruits (“Pumpkins, peppers, and eggplants are fruits too”) and seeds, including beans, rice, wheat, and walnuts. The basic, declarative sentences and use of repetition—“I eat different parts from different plants. Sometimes I eat the leaves. And sometimes I eat the roots and tubers”—underscore the message suggested by the title. Rockwell treats each vegetable like a treasure; even kids with aversions to veggies may be intrigued. Ages 4–8. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

03/01/2014
PreS-Gr 2—This helpful book for young readers sheds light on the edible aspects of plants. Through first-person narration, Rockwell covers where plants grow and discusses their different parts (fruits, seeds, stems), explaining which ones we consume. Vivid and detailed gauche and colored-pencil-on-paper illustrations fill each page, and many of the pictures are actually large diagrams with labels and captions that complement the facts described. Though the text is simple and straightforward, it's perfect for developing readers. This book will make a fine addition to libraries that serve children and have a need for materials on this particular subject matter.—Nancy Jo Lambert, Ruth Borchardt Elementary, Plano, TX

School Library Journal

2014-03-03
This simplest of informational picture books offers a sensible, sunny celebration of the plants—specifically the parts of plants—that we eat. The opening scene shows a boy seated at table surrounded by a rich harvest. He's holding a watermelon rind that mirrors the wide grin he wears, helping to set the good-natured tone of the book. As preschoolers examine the pages, they will learn about the featured fruits and vegetables and how they grew. Warm gouache-and–colored-pencil illustrations first depict a garden where "Plants reach up for the sun. / They grow down in the ground." As the narrator goes on to explain that "I eat different parts from different plants," such as roots, tubers, bulbs, stems, flowers and seeds, youngsters will find labeled images to peruse. The short, declarative sentences are easily digested by the very youngest and will tempt burgeoning readers to test their skills. Best of all, children will surely be inspired to taste some of the produce the next time it appears on their plates. Delicious on its own, and it will pair well with other books about gardens, plants and healthy eating habits. (Informational picture book. 2-5)

Kirkus Reviews