Gnomer's Corner

Rhyming verse celebrates a gnome king’s fruit-and-vegetable bounty in this debut illustrated children’s book.

King Jerome Gnomer—who looks like a typical gnome statue in a photograph—gets word that it’s the right moment to plant a garden, and he wastes no time. First, he plans his beds and rows so that each kind of plant will get the right sun, shade, water, and compatible neighbors, and then he purchases seeds. Generally pagelong stanzas of rhyming couplets describe each step of the process, including planting, weeding, getting rid of pests, and inspecting the final harvest. The king gets some help from garden-tending fairies and Boots, a cat who gets rid of intruders; she’s said to relocate them, but ominously “Baby bunnies did not stand a chance.” The garden’s crops feature a huge variety of fruits and vegetables: winter and summer squashes, herbs like cilantro and mint, onions and garlic, greens, five kinds of peppers and six types of tomatoes, various beans and peas, broccoli, watermelons, berries, and more. The king appreciates the wonder of his garden, giving praise “to water, sun, soil, dreams, and belief.” Once a year, Gnomer shares his cornucopia with the hungry, throwing them a free feast and sleeping soundly after his labors. In her book, Cromer provides an informative primer on gardening tasks cloaked in appealingly lush descriptions: “Growing red under the ground, balling up big, round, and bright. / The radishes Gnomer tasted bit his tongue with a bite.” The verse often has a charming, fairy-tale ring, but some lines can become prosaic, and the meter is frequently irregular, as in “Catching and imprisoning trespassers, safely kept under his control. / Gnomer was observant and took care of destructive weeds and slugs.” Stock photos help readers picture garden animals, bugs, and plants.

An introduction to gardening for kids that’s both practical and entertaining. (Children's book, 5-8)

- Kirkus Reviews