Kindness Grows

by Britta Teckentrup, Britta Teckentrup (Illustrator)

Overview

Angry words can ruin friendships, but a gesture as simple as a smile can cause kindness to bloom and friendships to mend. Die-cut pages feature a sapling that grows into a flowering tree with each turn of the page as kindness is spread.

Harsh words, disagreements, and shouting can cause friendships to bend and sometime break. Friends are sad when they're left out, and once a mean word is spoken, it's impossible to take it back. But what if we were to spread kindness instead? Offering words of encouragement, sharing, caring for others, and playing together all help to make friendships stronger -- and we are certainly stronger together!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781680102291
Publisher:	Tiger Tales.
Publication date:	09/22/2020
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD630L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Britta Teckentrup was born in Hamburg, Germany and grew up in a town called Wuppertal. She moved to London in 1988 to study illustration and fine art at St Martin's College and the Royal College of Art. Britta is the author and illustrator of many well-loved books for children. Britta has written and illustrated 60 children's books which have been published in over 20 different countries. After 17 years in the UK - Britta now lives and works in Berlin with her husband, young son and their cat.

Britta Teckentrup was born in Hamburg, Germany and grew up in a town called Wuppertal. She moved to London in 1988 to study illustration and fine art at St Martin's College and the Royal College of Art. Britta is the author and illustrator of many well-loved books for children. Britta has written and illustrated 60 children's books which have been published in over 20 different countries. Her fine art work has been frequently exhibited at her London gallery and at art fairs all over the world.

Editorial Reviews

08/21/2020

PreS-Gr 2—This book makes clever use of die-cut pages as a metaphor for the impact of actions and feelings on friendships. On each spread, the die cut represents either a widening crack in friendships caused by negative actions and emotions while on the opposing page the same cutout is a growing tree, nourished by positive connections. At the end of book the illustrations cross the limits of their respective panels, first with leaves and then by reaching out a hand. The children slip through a final opening in the pages to all join hands around the tree of love and kindness. The wood print illustrations depict children with a variety of skin tones and hair colors in a color palette dominated by muted and neutral colors for the negative emotions and vibrant nature tones for the growing friendships. One spread cautions that while "it's so hard to be friendly when all we feel is sad. Sometimes we are thoughtless and we make others feel bad." The opposite page intones that "a kindly thought or action can make somebody's day. If we keep our friends close by, we won't drive them away." The skillful illustrations and creative use of engineering is the strength of this title, while the moralizing text gives the book an old-fashioned feel. VERDICT An additional purchase, where the beauty of the presentation is marred by a sentimental narration.—Amanda Foulk, Sacramento P.L.

School Library Journal

2020-07-28
Rhyming verses about kindness using a consistent metaphor of widening cracks versus blooming plants are amplified by cutouts on each page.

The art and layout are spectacular, from the cover through the double-page spreads near the end. Racially diverse toddlers are shown engaging in various moods and behaviors, some of which create unhappiness and some of which lead to friendship and happiness. Every page’s color palette and composition perfectly complement the narrative. The initial verso shows two children in aggressive stances, backgrounded by a dark, partly moonlit sky. Between them is a slender, crooked cutout. The large-type text reads: “It all / starts / with a / crack / that we can hardly see. / It happens when we shout / or if we disagree.” The recto shows two children in sunlight, with one offering a pretty leaf to the other, and the rhyme addresses the good that grows from kindness. In this image, the crooked die cut forms the trunk of a tiny sapling. Until the final double-page spreads, the art follows this clever setup: dark deeds and a crack on the left, and good deeds and a growing tree on the right. Unfortunately, the text is far from the equal of the art: It is banal and preachy, and it does not even scan well without some effort on the part of whomever is reading it. Still, the youngest children will solemnly agree with the do’s and don’ts, and they may decide to memorize a page or two.

Exciting artwork paired with disappointingly dull text. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews