Common Sense Media Review
By Jan Carr
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Garden critters offer relatable lesson on kindness, sharing.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
A rabbit and a mouse plant seeds, and "in time, with love and care," the seeds grow into vegetables. The animals gleefully enjoy their harvest until some birds show up. But the rabbit and mouse don't want to share, planting "a seed of selfishness," which leads to a squawking match and food fight. The mouse then offers the birds a tomato, planting a "seed of kindness," and the birds respond with a kindness of their own -- spreading more seeds as they fly. In the end, the animals enjoy the sweet fruits of cooperation.
Is It Any Good?
IF YOU PLANT A SEED is a masterful introduction to lessons about kindness, sharing, and cooperation. Animal characters make the lesson fun, and kids will recognize their own playground squabbles and reluctance to share in the conflict between the animals. Author-illustrator Kadir Nelson lets the richly expressive pictures tell much of the story. In a spread with no text, birds stare challengingly out at the reader; the food fight is busily chaotic; and in the aftermath of the fight, all the animals look subdued and reflective, creating a meaningful turning point.
The spare text also is choice. When the animals refuse to share, they're planting "a seed of selfishness." When the mouse offers the birds a tomato as truce, it's "a seed of kindness." The gardening metaphor is set up beautifully and pays off with a happy harvest at the end.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about sharing. Do you always feel like sharing? How do you feel when other kids don't share with you? Have you ever started a fight and felt bad afterward?
How is planting actual seeds like planting seeds of kindness? Why do you think the author compared them?
How do real birds spread seeds?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Kadir Nelson
- Genre : Picture Book
- Topics : Animals ( Wild Animals ) , Friendship , STEM
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Balzer + Bray
- Publication date : March 3, 2015
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 4 - 8
- Number of pages : 32
- Available on : Hardback
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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