Book Review: The Boy Who Grew Flowers

As a child life can be hard. Parents will teach their children to celebrate their differences, but their peers often pick on them for whatever makes them different. To a child, this can be devastating as they all want to fit in. The Boy who Grew Flowers is a heartwarming and beautiful about how being kind is really the more important trait a child can have.

Rink and his family live high up on Lonesome Mountain. As they are the only family there all the other kids like to ignore Rink because he and his family are definitely the strange sort. The teacher leaves Rink in the back of the class and won’t even talk to him. Despite all that, Rink is still a good kid that looks forward to living each day.

Rink is special and has a gift that, while odd, is definitely one of beauty. When the full moon appears Rink grows flowers from his body! This makes him horribly different though he is not ashamed. One day, he meets a girl who is beautiful and kind. He likes her immediately, but the other kids tell her all about why Rink is worth avoiding. Little Angelina’s courage and honor is inspiring as she befriends Rink anyway.

This story has a lovely message from beginning to end. It is absolutely perfect for kids in Kindergarten to as high as the 3rd or 4th grade. Jen Wojtowicz is the first time author of this marvelous book. Before writing, she was (and still is) an artist who also teaches art to people with disabilities. This heartwarming story was created by Ms. Wojtowicz for her brother who has autism. It was her way of showing that people need to try a little harder to be accepting in order to remove some of the suffering that plagues us on a daily basis.

The illustrations, provided by Steve Adams added to the touching, creative book that was presented in the final package. The pictures of the flowers sprouting from Rink’s body were not only adorable, but they were funny, as well.

Bottom Line: The Boy who Grew Flowers is a must have for your child’s collection. This hard cover book is perfect for children who are struggling with being accepted for who they are. It also works excellently to show them they do not need to be someone else. Sometimes the most important thing a child can be is just who they are.

Rating:

[tags]The Boy Who Grew Flowers, Celebrate Differences, Child Book, Jen Wojtowicz, Book Review
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