Joy Takes Root

Illustrated by Ashleigh Corrin
$10.99 US
Penguin Young Readers | Kokila
On sale Jun 20, 2023 | 9780593406793
Age 4-8 years
Reading Level: Lexile AD810L | Fountas & Pinnell O
Sales rights: World
In her grandmother's garden, a young Black girl learns about mindfulness and herbal medicine in this soothing intergenerational story about our connection to nature.

It's Joy's first summer in her grandmother's South Carolina gardena rite of passage. In the midst of okra, spinach, and strawberries, Grammy teaches Joy that plants are friends with many uses. Herbs, for example, can be turned into medicine. 
 
There in Grammy's abundant backyard, Joy learns to listen for the heartbeat of the earth and connect it to her own as she takes deep breaths and puts her intentions into the soil. By the story's end, she learns to grow seeds in her own garden, honoring all that her grandmother taught her. With sensory-rich illustrations from award-winning illustrator Ashleigh Corrin, Joy Takes Root is a blissful reminder of all that might bloom.
PRAISE FOR JOY TAKES ROOT 

Black Caucus American Library Association Best of the Best 2023

 
"A quiet, thoughtful tale that promotes mindfulness, intentionality, gratitude, and connection." --Kirkus Reviews

"Moving... a reap-what-you-sow telling that considers what’s been given and what’s yet to come." --Publishers Weekly

"A beautiful ode to both the natural world and intergenerational cultural wisdom that imbues the sequential steps of planting a garden with a deeply felt spirituality." --The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

About

In her grandmother's garden, a young Black girl learns about mindfulness and herbal medicine in this soothing intergenerational story about our connection to nature.

It's Joy's first summer in her grandmother's South Carolina gardena rite of passage. In the midst of okra, spinach, and strawberries, Grammy teaches Joy that plants are friends with many uses. Herbs, for example, can be turned into medicine. 
 
There in Grammy's abundant backyard, Joy learns to listen for the heartbeat of the earth and connect it to her own as she takes deep breaths and puts her intentions into the soil. By the story's end, she learns to grow seeds in her own garden, honoring all that her grandmother taught her. With sensory-rich illustrations from award-winning illustrator Ashleigh Corrin, Joy Takes Root is a blissful reminder of all that might bloom.

Praise

PRAISE FOR JOY TAKES ROOT 

Black Caucus American Library Association Best of the Best 2023

 
"A quiet, thoughtful tale that promotes mindfulness, intentionality, gratitude, and connection." --Kirkus Reviews

"Moving... a reap-what-you-sow telling that considers what’s been given and what’s yet to come." --Publishers Weekly

"A beautiful ode to both the natural world and intergenerational cultural wisdom that imbues the sequential steps of planting a garden with a deeply felt spirituality." --The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books