Badger’s Perfect Garden

In a story about patience and tempering expectations, Kaulitzki creates a woodland world of tree trunk homes and anthropomorphic animals. Red Squirrel and Dormouse help Badger plant a garden using the seeds he has stored in small jars. Badger envisions the plants growing into perfectly aligned rows, so when a storm washes out the garden, he despairs. His friends reassure him (“Seeds will float on the wind again, when the sunniest days come”), but, inconsolable, Badger spends the summer indoors. Red Squirrel, Dormouse, and Weasel excitedly knock on his door one day: the scattered seeds have grown into a beautiful, wild mélange of flowers. Arnold imparts a relatable message: thwarted plans can yield unexpected gifts. Ages 4–8. [em](Mar.) [/em]