Spring Books

I’ve asked each of my rascals to select their favorite Spring book. We celebrated this season of growth and change with books that include blooming flowers, trees, adventure, and gardening.

We are the Gardeners

The Story

We Are the Gardeners is the first book by Joanna Gaines and her children. This book tells the story of how the Gaines children became interested in gardening after their dad brought a fern home. The children began watering the fern multiple times a day and, over time, the fern died. The children were disappointed but learned the important lesson of never giving up.

The Artwork

This book takes illustrations to the next level. In true Magnolia style, this book is beautiful and worth purchasing for the artwork alone. I also love the custom hand lettering that illustrator Julianna Swaney included throughout the book. I’m already a huge book lover as it is and books with aesthetic appeal continue to woo me.

The Lessons

In addition to being a fun, beautifully illustrated read, We Are the Gardeners teaches children important life lessons of never giving up after we fail. Failure is part of the gardening journey and a part of growing up.

The World Needs Who You Were Made to Be

The Story

A timely story about how beautiful life can be when we celebrate our differences.

The World Needs Who You Were Made to Be follows a group of children as they build hot air balloons.

Some kids like to work alone, some kids like to work in a team, some kids like to follow a plan, and some kids like to see where their creativity takes them. No matter how the little ones build their balloons, once up in the air, the sky shines bright with a confetti of colour.

The Artwork

With stunning watercolor illustrations on every page, this is a gorgeous book about sharing our individual talents and abilities with the world, and never holding our true selves back.

The Lesson

Each of us is different and we all have unique gifts to offer the world. We can celebrate our differences.

Whether you grab a picnic blanket and go out in the sunny backyard or cozy up in a chair by the rainy window, these Spring books are the ones that my kids love reading over and over again.

Written by Head Rascal (Ngoc Nguyen Lay), mother of two rascals, ages 6 and 9. Photos by Adrienne Gunde Photography.