"A story about the small things in one neighborhood—their fragility, strength, and connection—and their power to make a difference." (Booklist starred review)
This powerful wordless picture book with beautiful collage illustrations can be "enjoyed independently or incorporated into units on the environment, communities, or artistic technique," according to School Library Journal. "A book to treasure."
In Jeannie Baker's striking, natural collages, an urban community reclaims its land. A city street becomes a living, thriving neighborhood—a place to call home.
Little by little, baby Tracy grows. She and her neighbors begin to rescue their street. Together, children and adults plant grass and trees and bushes in the empty spaces. They stop the cars. Everything begins to blossom.
As an author/artist note states: "The choice is ours to make—having simply a place to live or, by understanding the land and caring for it, belonging to a living home."
A family. A house. A neighborhood. A place to play. A place to feel safe.
A family.
A house.
A neighborhood.
A place to play.
A place to feel safe.
Little by little, baby Tracy grows. She and her neighbors begin to rescue their street. Together, children and adults plant grass and trees and bushes in the empty spaces. They paint murals over old graffiti. They stop the cars. Everything begins to blossom.
In Jeannie Baker's striking, natural collages, an urban community reclaims its land. A drab city street becomes a living, thriving neighborhood -- a place to call home.
"The area is slowly reclaimed, so that the final view through the window is clean, lush, and green, with birds nesting peacefully in new trees and vistas that reveal glimpses of the now-visible blue river. In each of the double-page views through the window, readers can note not just the physical changes, but also the people in the community actively engaged in affecting those changes and producing a true home. Baker uses natural materials to create detailed, arresting collages that tell a story in which words are superfluous."
