BOOK REVIEW- Soil Sisters Magical Garden Adventure: Savoring the Soul of Mother Earth from Bobbi J Simmons , Thomas Simmons

Title: Soil Sisters Magical Garden Adventure: Savoring the Soul of Mother Earth

Authors: Bobbi J Simmons , Thomas Simmons @Jean2021

Illustrator: Blakely Frederick

Reading Age range: 

Publisher: BlackGold Publishing (May 1, 2023)

Paperback: 39 pages

ISBN-10: 1953130267

ISBN-13: 978-1953130266

REFERRAL IN AALBC https://aalbc.com/tc/topic/10407-book-reviews

MY REVIEW

John Boyd Jr , founder of the National Black Farmer's Association said: "I'm owning land that many of my forefathers worked when it was scotch-free. You know - slave labor man" The relationship that Black people whose forebears were enslaved have to the land that compose the states of the U.S.A. is older than the U.S.A. itself; it is a relationship that introduced the yam, varieties of rice, introduced the okra into the cuisine of the entire populace of the U.S.A.; it is a relationship full of blood, from black bodies after exposure to white whips, white laws, white guns nourishing the soil. A relationship most of said blacks want to forget for obvious reasons. But, Bobbi J Simmons side her husband, Tommy Simmons, compose a loving Black descended of enslaved couple who don't want the relationship forgotten. Not to deny the painful shedding of blood but to keep alive the pride in the craft, the heritage of loving nature, that exist alongside the painful blood in said relationship. In their book, Soil Sisters Magical Garden Adventure, they focus their efforts on the children, the youngest descendants of those enslaved in the U.S.A. , who in majority have been denied learning or knowing of said relationship for said negative reasons. The Simmons weave a simple tale of love, love of growing things, as pure as Bilbo Baggins love for the shire in "the hobbit". The goal, the road, the prize are all the same, watching something in nature you nurture spread joy throughout your life. The illustrations from Blakely have functional color tones, and usually reflect the prose the authors set. Some parents or adult readers may be offset or opposed to certain word choices but I argue the language is appropriate to the audience of young children who should be forgiven as well for a few emissions of their dialect or a few slip ups of the tongue. All readers: child, parent, teacher will enjoy the historical pages; each give a key factor plus visage of a historical figure but said readers will also want more of them. The most important aspect in the book is what can not be read. It is the seeds that come with the book, which surprised me. The little packet of seeds provide children or parents or teachers an offline chance to do more than be inspired from or enjoy reading a story about black youth loving to grow things, supported by their local community while supporting their local community, even with spiritual help when need be; it allows all who buy the book a chance to do offline as the characters in the book, on land they own. And even if said land is only a small pot, the heritage of love to the land Black people grow in the USA: the Simmons prose speaks of, Blakely's art visualizes, Boyd jr. organizes for gains another Black person on an adventurous path to embracing. That is a worthy cause and the only way to lessen the growth of the negativity from the past is to grow another tree that emphasizes the positivity from the past.