Sophie - Picture Book

*Isabella's Garden*

Isabella's Garden is a stunning picture book by Glenda Millard and Rebecca Cool. The illustrations are fantastic and incredibly unique sketch like pictures. They are beautifully bold and colourful and drew me to read this book. The story itself is unique also which adds a new line and then repeats the previous ones. The story begins,

'This is the soil all dark and deep, in Isabella's garden.
These are the seeds that sleep int he soil all dark and deep, in Isabella's garden.
This is the rain that soaks the seeds that sleep in the soil all dark and deep, in Isabella's garden.'

And so the story continues in this repetitive nature which allows young readers to join in the reading, and engage with the text. The text still follows a narrative structure as there is a complication which occurs and that is the beginning of winter. The conclusion is that once winter is over the garden grows again. Isabella's Garden shows the cycle of life that occurs in our gardens with the seasonal changes.

This is a lovely book that I would definitely encourage teachers to read to their students when analysing different narrative and writing styles.