THE GIANT VEGETABLE GARDEN

by Nadine Bernard Westcott ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 22, 1982

Together, in one common garden, Westcott's villagers grow theft gigantic vegetables in response to their tail-coated, top-hatted mayor's announcement: ""Contest at the County Fair! And a cash prize to the town that grows the freest vegetables!"" As the prize will be split among them, all the villagers dream of how they'll spend their shares--and we see sports cars, sports equipment, and (for a chef) a food processor in the men's thought balloons, but only clothing and jewelry in the women's. Anyway, they win, find that the shares won't buy much at all, but redeem the day by canning and then picnicking on the produce. Westcott's lively, brightly colored pictures demand that you stop and scrutinize all the busy gardeners, although the the details aren't always witty enough to be individually rewarding. The story, too, looks bright at fast, but it has less zest than the pictures. There's a routine comic ending, announcing a new flower garden contest and showing in their response that the villagers haven't learned their lesson. Still, all that activity will catch the eye, and the size disproportion is always good for a few twists.

Pub Date: Oct. 22, 1982

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Atlantic/Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1982

Categories: CHILDREN'S