Fairy tales and allegories! No question. . thank you for this Growing up on a little farm in the middle of Illinois the photos were so magical. I imagined these mythical, tiny beings lived in the forest, under flower petals, next to streams- everywhere in nature. And a Heaven in a Wild Flower My favorite is the Three Little Pigs story, not only I loved the memorable story but I also played the youngest pig role in a play during my kindergarten graduation! My most favorite books from childhood were those from Richard Scarry. This looks like a beautiful and delightfully fun book! I was never a big reader until a few years ago but one book I read over and over was a childrens picture book called Emmetts Pig. My love of the written word is quite contagious, and the best way it was used is to ignite a passion for all things wordy with my students over the years, no matter what age. I think I can, I think I can, I KNOW I CAN! I loved the story of pippi longstocking and always wanted to be like her: cheerful and wild, creative and independent. When I was young I dreamed of being an illustrator of those beautiful childrens books. I cant remember a single book so to say but a lifestyle, a refuge, a runaway . One of my favorite picture books as a child, was Caldecott winner, A Tree is Nice by Janice May Udry. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to enjoy another new book! They inspired me to become a farmer and want to live off the land. It is beautifully illustrated in soft gentle images. I even had my grandma help me sew my doll and me matching outfits to look the ingalls wilder sisters. It helped shape the artist and mother I am today, I loved anything to do with friends having adventures together! Required fields are marked *. When I was young I read every Laura Ingalls Wilder book sometimes several times. There was a book store and library a few blocks from my house and where I would spend most afternoons. A kids book about dogs, cars and a search for the big dog party. The story about Queen Esther has been my favorite. Alice in Wonderland I do remember looking at a book my parents had which had photos of old masterpiece paintings. My favorite series of books to read as a child was the adventure series The Boxcar Children. I read dozens of them! We see the world through the eyes of this small creature who would fit in your hand. As a child I loved any book I could play school with all my Dollies acting as students, the more colorful the better. It made me smile as I reached back in time to decide what I would say. I am still the same as an adult, except now I get to explore the world more. Lookup it up at Rhymes.com - the most comprehensive rhyming words dictionary on the web! One favorite I remember very clearly was The Quiltmakers Gift because it was so beautifully illustrated and a wonderful story. These creatures, usually horses or dogs, often overcame great hardship in order to find their way home or win that race. There was an element of sentimentality but also often a sense of adventure and wonder. I loved reading any book about a different place or culture, I always loved learned about how other people live. When trying to come up with a name for our flower farm I knew we needed to call it Basket of Flowers Farm after that Childhood book because of what the book was all about. I loved Annes independent and adventurous spirit! Im currently rereading Kim Stanley Robinsons Forty Signs of Rain Trilogy. It seems like many of these imagined creative characters and their lovely vignettes are inspired by your own life. Im sure the books helped inspire the great love I have for all the animals I see around me. A wonderful memory I have is of my sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Stewart, reading The Call of the Wild by Jack London to our class everyday after recess. My mother was really great at choosing books that were age appropriate and may contain tidbits to store away for life in general. I loved finding things in unexpected places and was amazed how beautifully and subtlety this random object could be woven into a bigger picture. Lots of animal, garden and childcare done by Pell as he worked his way through summer to get his own new blue suit. Repetitive books were my favorite to read as a kid. . The Bee Man of Orn is about accepting people for who they naturally are. It was very organic in that sense. Reading took me anywhere I wanted to go, and now in my garden I imagine those fairies I know they are there loving the flowers as much as I do! Ham, noodles, lamb. Zoes book looks to be a similar experience and has heightened my desire to visit her country. I am just thinking about getting some flower seeds started in my cold Victorian farmhouse. Lucky me! My favorite books were about animals, farming and gracious living. My favorite was A Childs Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson. I could look at those images and my imagination would take me straight into the forest. My grandmother had a bookshelf full of them in the leather-protected cover. My favorites were always the books filled with magic and wonder! I love to sit quietly in the center of it all, and commune with nature. Thanks for the interview and this opportunity! I enjoyed sharing them both with my daughters when they were young as well. Today I share and surround myself with garden beauty (and oversize art books!) One of my favourite books when I was little was The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. As the oldest I took care of my siblings. The Gem. I passed my books along to my nieces years later, and will share them with my granddaughters when theyre just a little older. When I was a little girl I was in love with those bird books from Costco with buttons on the side that would play the song of the bird on the page. Now the two share a daughter, Alaiya Grace, who was born three months premature earlier this year. Its such a joyous, playful book and it was fun to spy some Floret seed packages woven into a few of your stunning imageswe appreciate the love! Im sure my subconscious was saying, If she can.. I always loved being read to along with my sister by my mom who as a young woman taught school in a one room school house in South Dakota. When I was young I liked my Bible story books. At first, I was reading lots of WWII fiction based on true stories and real people. Becoming a Master Gardener has also taught me that I have so much to discover and explore in the world of gardening, so my love of all things floral has developed into a life-directing passion. I devoured books as a kid and still do. My grandma would bring me books from yard sales, I would get books at the library, and when I was lucky I would get to go to the bookstore at the mall (those are long gone now). We are just moving into a new build with a blank slate and cannot wait to get started. Growing up, I loved a book my grandmother gave me called Pictures of Japan that had amazing illustrations of Gardens and oceans in Japan along with beautiful poetry and haikus. Zoe, your work is amazing! I loved all books as a child I would get lost in pictures and stories. The Little Golden books! I loved Richard Scarry books! I loved any kind of series books as I loved to get to know the characters and didnt want to leave them behind. I now enjoy living away from the city and people. Hoping for a beautiful Dahlia garden this year!! Growing up in a small town, I was so curious about the rest of the world, other landscapes, other cultures I guess it is was led me to learn foreign languages, and later on to study and live abroad. My father gave me a book to help me appreciate nature- John Muir The Yosemite. My favorite style of fiction now is Historical Fiction. It was about a mother and son raccoon- I grew to love it more and more and eventually my dad got me a faux raccoon hat I would gallop around in hehe! Loved the interview! As a reluctant young reader, I remember the first series that I enjoyed reading on my own was Molly from the American Girl collection. Sugar, oh sugar, how you melt my heart. , for taking the time to share about what youve been up to and your beautiful new book with Floret readers. Its amazing how our perceptions change as we grow! Their stories were inspiring. The illustrations drew me in as I learned to read and through the ten volumes learned about Gods love for us for me! There were so many beloved books when I wss s child. If I had to pick just one type it would be romance. Where there was hurt at home , there lied hope in between the pages. I especially loved the rocks and gems. I mean here it is the name of our flower farm and I go back to the foundation of that book many a time! But I still recommend the occasional flowe- flitting approach because that does bring many lovely new suprises! I was the youngest of five children and my older sister would often read to me at night. As an adult the Percy Jackson series, Harry Potter just makes all your troubles fade away because Im on an adventure in those books. I loved the Anne of Green Gables series as a child-it helped me appreciate the small beautiful things in life and see life as an adventure. So I thought one day Id like to write a story about one instead. We are surrounded by nature and our neighbors farm animals and even through Im learning country life is not easy (my husband grew up in the country with a farmer father) I love seeing the beauty in the simple world around us, how everything works cohesively to thrive and how hard work provides opportunities for things to grow. Im a Fairy tales reader! I treasure the fact I still have this book after 50+ years of loving it. I can remember times of her babysitting me before I was old enough for school and loved flipping through the pages. Praying for safety and speedy recovery from the damages of the storm. At the end of the book was a suitcase full of stickers from where Felix traveled. I always had a book with me. Full of kindness and life lifting lessons. As an adult, I have read it again several times. I had no books in the home as a child. I love the realistic drawings of the English countryside and the farm animals. filled with wild flowers and trees! I loved to read as a child and my Mom would take us to the library each week to pick up another batch of amazing stories. They will be reading her books 100 years from now. I think I have often killed my efforts of growing plants with kindness. Moomin a whimsical little character from Finland is my all time favourite kids book. Of course, eventually I found The Secret Garden also English -and fell in love with primroses and snow drops. Maybe Ill retire when Im 80! Eventually I read and wrote lots of poetry. I was a huge fan of the Ramona Quimby series. The less well known Suess books are still a favorite of mine to read to kids. He gave me my dream of riding the trails. My favorite of all time is The Secret Garden. a bright light for a muddy challenge. We need to see beauty in times like these. Sometimes I feel like Im from another planet. My favorite type of books as a kid were mysteries. Then to find out when I got older how the Lion represented Christ and entire storyline was a salvation message, that made me like the book even more. Zes book is beautiful and I cant wait to see it in person! Wish i could find it again! My Mom was a kindergarten teacher who started our schools library in western PA when I was 7, making the passion of reading mine forever. How do you pick just one!? As a grownup with littles Ive decided you can never be too old picture books. Like Miss Rumphius, I, too, hope to make the world more beautiful, be it with roadsides abundant with lupine or sharing flowers in another way with the world. My favorite book as a child was Bambi and I loved Thumper peaking his head out in the field of wild flowers. The names and colors filled me with joy and sent me on my love affair with curiosity and nature. As an adult I can really appreciate the quality of line work in the illustrations, and how the subtle expression of the characters and landscapes add just enough information to perfectly capture the mood of escape and wild fantasy. I would open it up and it would instantly transport me to another world. I needed her fresh eyes on it as we made the final adjustments. Zo Fields Lost & Found looks gorgeously colorful to immerse oneself on snowy white/gray days. As I was a little girl I found the book named Peter Rabbit I wasnt able to understand the language , because I was too young. Jessies illustrations were so dreamy. Have always loved books. It was so great! As a child I loved to read Tasha Tudors books especially, Rosemary for Remember. It was given to me on my birthday one year and I remember the lovely flowers with each month of the year. As an adult my husband bought me Florets Flower books(2 of them) and now I cant wait to add to my collection. I grew up in Poland and when I was a kid there was a series out about a boy and his adventurer father and crew who went around the world and had all kinds of adventures from the Amazon to Australia and everywhere else. But I loved and still love Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia (currently reading to my kids), and the Melendys. I was moved by the clash of sensitivity, or perhaps even hypersensitivity, with a large, difficult world. Thank you for the chance to share this book and this memory! Its respectful to take care as we visit these places. I loved the whimsy, playful nature of these books but also the messages of inclusion and kindness that I have been instilled in my life. When I was about 4 years old my mother gave me a little spot in her large garden for my very own. He gave us all plants to sustain our bodies and beautify our lives. pearl, earl and whirl all rhyme with girl in my book BaskerviIle. The legacy lives on. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. It really didnt matter what it was, I would read every word of cereal boxes! Congratulations to Zo and her mum Sue! When I was old enough to read The Secret Garden I felt that it had been written just for me! What a great idea for a book. I know its a Christmas book, but my grandpa gave it to me when I was eight and told me he still hears the bell every Christmas. I was about 7 years old, and to this day I still remember how deeply her story touched me. I couldnt help but share! They were a loving family and always were taught to approach things with kindness and loved their prairie livingI long to live somewhere with rolling hills and landand taught my children to always be kind! Today I find joy in combining found flowers in my yard w roses and irises and small treasures nestled in a tea cup or jelly jar or bottle. Im working to create a secret garden feel in my tiny back yard right now. I always dreamed about living in a treehouse and having endless areas to explore and ride my bike. I had a reading disability so as a kid, I loved seek and find books because I didnt have to read any words. Eating a salad is one of the smartest things you can do! Its not that I loved their stories I dont even remember them now like I do other beloved books =) but the way they showed that decisions have consequences to think carefully and choose wisely and that sometimes even when you do, things still go sideways thats has a pretty significant influence. My favorites as an early reader were the Narnia series and Little House on the Prarie. Its all a mystery! Simply always loved flowers. . I loved the little house on the prairie series when I was a little girl. The transformation of the overgrown neglected garden into a beautiful paradise was my favorite!! What a cool idea, and stunning images! The book just makes you want to go out in the snow in the woods and see all the wonders. A bird drawn into a flower. Iloved a chapter book whose name i can t rememer. Billy Possum, Reddy Fox, and Peter Cottontail. (This admission may be dating me !) Give them food that is nutritious and tasty. Growing up the book I was most fascinated by was a Nat Geo book about China. If there were a picture book that captured me, Id say anything about Christopher Robin and Pooh. Recently, that inspired me to start my own flower garden. However, I was always interested in the vegetable garden and the flowers that my mom grew. They were cute gumnut babies, friends with all the Australian bush folk and always trying to be kind and helpful. If it had a flower theme, all the better! Octopus, octopus, eight arms to hold you, Ill squeeze you tight until you turn blue. I get to review and purchase mysteries to put into the hands of new readers. I think the second delight was the best! Filed Under: Age Preschool, Age: Kindergarten, Food Activities, Preschool Activities, Printables, Rhyming | Leave a Comment. I still love learning! Im a little pine nut, short and stout. I could identify with her love of nature and beauty, coming up with creative names for things and places, being often misunderstood, her longing for friendship and achievement, and her passionate outbursts. I absolutely loved books as a child and still do as an adult. I enjoyed the Bobsey Twins and Nancy Drew series growing up. I read so much as a child; some of my favorites were the series: Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, and The Bobbsey Twins. What a beautiful book!! It helped to encourage my walk with the Lord from a young age and as an adult reminds me of the child like joy and adventure of doing life with Him. Oh my!! Add a . I loved and still do Beatrix Potter books. I loved yet feared Maurice Sendaks Where the Wild Things Are. Thanks! The beauty we see in art flowers and nature what a gift! Paddington Bear, mostly because my dad read it to me. I was that girl who loved all things horse, spending hours drawing them and living for every other Thursday at 4pm when I could have a riding lesson on my favorite old black horse, Peanuts, at Jimmy Rainwaters Flying Horseshoe Ranch. I am a identical twin and there was a set of twin bears in the book (Flora and Dora) and I remember loving to see how each bear had their own interests and styles but in the end all loved eachothers company. I think thats the magic of this book. Fast forward 60 years, I care for my sweet 34 year old black mare, Misty, and the upper pasture is now the location of my flower farm. This looks like a gorgeous book! Thanks for a most enjoyable trip down memory lane! I read the ones I had over and over. But the encyclopedias opened up a whole world of where things grew, far away lands, flowers, insects and bees. Andrews books. Follow the links to read more about each one or buy them on the World Book Day bookshop.org store. My favorite books growing up!!! Ive always loved The Velveteen Rabbit and Rudyard Kiplings writings. A couple years ago I dipped my toe into the world of flowers, and now they have cast their spell on me, and my life will never be quite the same again. Loved all the Mary Poppins books. This book looks beautiful and will be fun to share with my grand daughters. The laughs because they controlled the story were priceless. As a child I loved to read books with great stories and beautiful inspiring thoughts. One of my favorite childhood books was Anne of Green Gables. For 36 years, I taught special needs students, giving them the skills they needed to succeed in this world while encouraging them to take advantage of and focus on all of the wonderful things they could do, not what they couldnt do. My parents saved those books for their grandkids, and I remember the surge of joy when they brought the box of Little Golden Books down from the attic for me to share with my daughters, lifting out each title and remembering how they made me feel. To have a girl identified protagonist who didnt fit in and learned to both feel entitled to and manage her anger at the wrongs of the world was very impactful. The only book I had as a small child was all about fairy tales. I think mysteries relate to gardening a lot. Favorite childrens books of mine are now in the hands of my young grandson. And any book with historical style drawings depicting flora and fauna! You have inspired me to work toward creating a garden that would captivate my child self. I think working with flowers allows me to create my own world of magic for others to explore. We also liked the fill in the blank short stories closure activities that my 4 th graders would listen to me read to them after they supplied me with nouns or adjectives or adverbs to tell the zany story. Just beautiful. Animalia by Graeme Base: artful, full of surprises and wonder for the animal world. This interview brought up ALL the magic. Remove the non-rhyming word and restate the rhyme. To this day I am moved to bring could be friends into my life and the lives of others, and cherish lovely garden spots that are tucked away. I was raised on a dairy farm and there were 8 children. I wanted to recreate that very same joy Id felt as a child but with a grown-up twist, incorporating my love of flowers and nature, but still holding onto that playfulness. My favourite book was The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, by C.S. To this day, one of the things I treasure most is sitting beside my loved one while we are both lost in our love of reading! I have sought that out working for one of the upscale hotels where I live at the front desk and working with caterers. Today, my goal is to always create a garden that brings peace and beauty to myself, my family and all those around me. I wanted to be outdoors playing and exploring. So fun! Oh, I read it many times, seeing myself on the back of what rhymes with kara? Je me souviens que nous avions la collection complte des livres de Disney que ma maman ctait procurer avec un abonnement. There is always a deeper meaning, a chance to find symbolism, and the opportunity to see Gods fingerprints in the mundane as long as you are willing to look. I will give a big shout-out to Sarah Hawkless of, Over the winter, we pulled out lots of roses that were underperforming. I live in NZ and can attest to the wrath borne by cyclone Gabrielle. There was a point in my life when I was trying to put together poems about nature, I was so impressed by its beauty! I now have a small garden business of my own that my little boys help with. The photos are out of this world. These are the spices that make up my potion. I loved the book Mandy by Julie Andrews and Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. But I also enjoyed Charlottes Web and anything Pooh. The Book With No Pictures by B J Novak; The Diary of a Killer Cat by Anne Fine; The Hundred-Mile-An-Hour Dog . We often talk about Miss Rumphius for being courageous, independent, a life learner, interested in others and inspiring us to make our world more beautiful. After I left for college my parents went in to the store to pick up my last paycheck and were handed a bill for an additional amount that I had purchased on store credit. Ive lived my life as an artist, but Ive slowly wandered back to flowers as a means of expression. I also loved Anne of Green Gables and Pipi Longstockings. I also loved those I Spy books so this is a perfect combination of the two books I loved as a child! Her description of the outside world was so vivid. I believe that reading fueled my love for learning and being able to really listen to people. A post shared by TokyoSoto (@tokyoglam). The book I recall MOST as a girl was Penelope Strawberry and River Radish! It shaped me by showing me the importance of reading to my own children, which I did for many, many years. Using our senses and creativity a quality nurtured by nature. I have not gone anywhere for ages, years really. It was a safe place to be, to feel who you are deep inside, free from all the turmoil of family and the worldI longed to find that place for me and now I have it right in my own backyard! I know it sounds crazy but we did not have a lot of money so the flowers were inspiration. So Ive started a book club for other young mothers and we share childrens books every month. As a child, I loved books about mistaken identitythe orphan in ragged clothes who was really a lost princess, or the ordinary-seeming boy who was a genius. I loved the Little House on the Prairie books as a child and they still inspire my pioneering spirit that lead to a love of gardening. Books filled my days with the anticipation of adventure and fun. What a lovely interview! as I got older, I loved to read about unique characters going on adventures in nature and into the great wild. And the defect home was when they were all together. I remember being in awe of how vast our universe is, which makes me even more impressed with the smallest details in life.