Fuse 8 n’ Kate: The Gardener by Sarah Stewart, ill. David Small

Spring has sprungeth! Not that you’d know it looking at Illinois right now, of course, but we’re getting close to sunnier days. To celebrate, we’ve decided to equinox the heck out of this latest podcast episode (I still say it can be a verb). Somehow we’ve never done this particular Caldecott Honor winner before, so we’re going to right a great wrong. We talk epistolary picture books, how clean 1936 New York City alleyways were (we’d love to hear your opinions on needles), Groucho Marx, and more.

Listen to the whole show here on Soundcloud or download it through iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, Google Play, PlayerFM, Audible, Amazon Music, or your preferred method of podcast selection.

Show Notes:

Remember how last week we asked what a bread truck would play if it played jingles like an Ice Cream truck? Well, we have a winner and it’s pretty darn amazing:

I’ve heard more than one person tell me that of all the Sarah Stewart/David Small pairings out there, this one is their favorite.  I may have to agree.  Truly, though, it was put best by Anita Silvey who said of the title, “When this book appeared in 1997, I thought it a wonderful re-creation of the Depression Era for children. Now it seems to me an even more important book. With children who might well identify with a parent out of work or having little money, the book speaks to the true American can-do spirit. Make beauty where none exists; plant victory gardens; transform useless landscapes into those that produce food and joy; reuse and recycle. The Gardener can be used to talk about all of these contemporary issues. It continues to send its readers off to find that “bit of earth,” whether in vacant lots, window boxes, or well-laid-out garden beds.”

This book appeared as #92 on the 2012 Top 100 Picture Books Poll list.

My guess is that this is Penn Station but I’m willing to be told otherwise. It’s a masterful shot regardless.

Kate got a little obsessed with the positioning of the bread in this window. We’re trying to figure out the logistics of how Uncle Jim’s bread there appears and disappears regularly.

I didn’t see this when Kate was talking about them, but I think that these are amaryllis, which would totally come up at this point.

Kate Recommends: Medieval Times

Betsy Recommends: John Mulaney’s Netflix show Kid Gorgeous at Radio City

Filed under: Fuse 8 n' Kate