Gardening as a transformational practice of helping people with anxiety or trauma has a therapeutic effect on Maya, the protagonist of ‘The Garden of Hope’, who faces challenging practical and emotional circumstances after the loss of her mother.
Despite the untidiness of the house and the overgrown garden, Maya’s Dad is a skilled storyteller who helps her deal with her emotions. Anxiety seems to be a family issue when he shares that her mother, too, was overwhelmed at times, but she found inner peace in planting. And that’s what Maya did: clean the ground, tidy the weeds, plant seeds. Her father joined, and the result was a stunning place of beauty where bees and ladybirds came, birds moved in, and hedgehogs arrived. The garden transforms into a place of love, enjoyment and finding purpose.
The Garden of Hope is a story for special occasions, helping children who go through grief and other deep emotions. Although introducing the missing mother in the first line could be an emotional stretch but the story delivers gardening as a tool for finding hope and purpose. The mixed-media illustrations capture the disorganisation of the house run by the father and encourage children to create, plant, and celebrate outdoors.
Further Information:
If you loved “The Garden of Hope”, check out more information about its author and illustrator:
The Stats:
- Title: The Garden of Hope
- Author and Illustrator: Isabel Otter & Katie Rewse
- ISBN: 978-1-848557-713-8
- Publication Date: 2018
- Page Count: 32
- Publisher: Caterpillar Books/ Little Tiger
- Recommended age: 5-8
- Categories/Topic: anxiety, loss, gardening
Where to Find it:
- Buy on Amazon: The Garden of Hope
- Find on: Goodreads
