Seedfolks
| Seedfolks | |
|---|---|
 Cover of Seedfolks |
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| Author(s) | Paul Fleischman |
| Illustrator | Judy Pedersen |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Children's literature |
| Publisher | HarperCollins |
| Publication date | 1997 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 102 |
| ISBN | ISBN 0060274719 / ISBN 0064472078 / ISBN 0060274727 |
| OCLC Number | 34943325 |
Seedfolks (1997) is a short children's novel written by Paul Fleischman, with illustrations by Judy Pedersen.[1] The story is told by a diverse cast of characters living on (or near) Gibb Street in Cleveland, Ohio, each from a different ethnic group. Chapter by chapter, each character describes the transformation of an empty lot into a vibrant community garden, and in doing so, they each experience their own transformations.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
Kim, a nine year old Vietnamese girl, decides to plant six Lima bean seeds in a vacant lot in remembrance of her dead father, a farmer, and she also has two sisters. She visits every day to see the progress. Ana, an older Romanian woman sees Kim bury something, and quickly assumes Kim is doing something illegal. Ana digs up the seeds in the vacant lot. Upon discovery of the Lima seeds, she feels sorry and replants them. Wendell, a man in the community, is told by Ana that Kim planted the seeds, and they are dying since Kim planted the seeds in the wrong season, so he decides to watch over them while he creates a small garden of his own in the space. Gonzalo, a Guatemalan teenager, and his uncle, Tio Juan, also add to the garden. Juan was a farmer in Guatemala and finally finds a place he feels comfortable in the garden. Juan helps others with their gardens, but no one can understand him because he doesn't even speak spanish. Sam is a 78 year old man who is nice to everyone, and started a contest to solve the problem of water reaching the gardens. If adults can't do it, let children try! Leona also sees the progress of the garden but dislikes all the garbage. She complains to the government and wins. Curtis plants tomatoes to win the heart of a former girlfriend, Lateesha. Curtis planted it outside the fence and becomes very protective of the garden after some of his tomatoes are stolen. So he enlists Royce, a teenager who is homeless. Sae Young owned a drycleaning shop until she was brutally beaten during a robbery. Soon she becomes fearful of people. She would never go out of her house and would have everything delivered. When she goes to the garden, she begins to feel safer around people. Nora is a nurse who takes care of a man in a wheelchair, Mr. Myles, and as they walk by the garden, Mr. Myles gets excited when walking by the garden and Nora convinces him to join in planting something. Amir owns a fabric store, he decides to plant eggplant and carrots in the garden. In the garden he meets up with someone who had insulted him in his store, and they become friends. He also assists in the arrest of a robber, along with Royce. Florence loves the garden but she can not participate because of arthritis in her wrists. She watches the garden change, and becomes upset when nobody is there for the fall and winter. She fears that nobody will come back the following year, but the story comes full circle when she sees Kim planting Lima beans in early spring again.
[edit] Characters
The characters consist of...
- Kim
- Ana
- Wendell
- Gonzalo
- Leona
- Sam
- Virgil
- Sae Young
- Curtis
- Nora
- Maricela
- Amir
- Florence
- Maricela
[edit] Awards and recognitions
- ALA Best Books for Young Adults (1998) [3]
- Buckeye Children's Book Award (1999), Grades 6-8 [4]
- Marathon County READS | Featured Book (2010)[5]
- Chosen as state and citywide read in communities across the country:
- Vermont
- Racine, WI
- Tampa, FL
- Newburgh, NY
- Boca Raton,
dallas,tx [6]
[edit] References
- ^ Library of Congress: "Seedfolks" (brief record) http://lccn.loc.gov/96026696
- ^ HarperCollinsPublishers: "Seedfolks" Summary http://www.harpercollins.com/books/Seedfolks/?isbn=9780064472074
- ^ ALA Best Books for Young Adults http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/bestbooksya/1998bestbooks.cfm
- ^ Buckeye Children's Book Awards: Past Winners http://www.bcbookaward.info/winners_past4.htm
- ^ Marathon County READS: an initiative of the Marathon County Public Library (MCPL) http://www.mcpl.us/reads
- ^ Harper Collins http://www.harpercollins.com/books/Seedfolks/?isbn=9780064472074
- ^ http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/bestbooksya/1998bestbooks.cfm
