Growing an Artist: The Story of a Landscaper and His Son
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15
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Average rating4
Four starred reviews! A Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of the Year From award-winning artist John Parra comes a “heartwarming family story that underscores the value of creativity, passion, and hard work” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) that is “a love letter to sons and their fathers” (BookPage, starred review) based on his childhood experience. Today is a big day—the first time Juanito gets to help his papi on the job as a landscape architect! Throughout the day, Juanito sketches anything that catches his eye: a nest full of baby birds, a nursery with row upon row of plants and flowers, and more. Father and son travel from house to house, pruning, weeding, mowing, and turning overgrown and chaotic yards into beautiful spaces. A few of the clients don’t appreciate Papi’s hard work, like Juanito’s classmate who pretends not to see him. But Papi always feels pride in owning his own business and in a job well done. And at the end of the day, Juanito may get the chance to turn his artistic eye toward landscape design—just like his papi.
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John Parra tells stories of his childhood, helping his papi in his father's work as a landscape contractor. Juanito struggles when a friend from school, Alex, looks away and pretends not to see him while he works in a yard. And yet he learns a lot about design and art and the value of work from his time helping his father.
Some beautiful lines from the conclusion to the book: “I see the yards my dad has made beautiful...I remember Alex's face in the window. I turn to a blank page and begin to sketch. I will use my art to tell the stories of hardworking, passionate people who make the world more beautiful. I will tell their stories. I will tell my story.”
