FICTION

No, No, Gnome!

by Ashlyn ANSTEE
No, No, Gnome! illus. by Ashlyn Anstee. 40p. ebook available. S. & S. Feb. 2016. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781481430913. LC 2015003893.
COPY ISBN
PreS-Gr 1—Gnome is excitable, particularly when it comes to the garden he and his fellow students at Greenthumb Elementary have been growing. When Gnome is assigned to weed, he pulls up too many plants. He is assigned to water but plays with the hose. He is supposed to stand still and hold a basket but chases animals all around the garden and is sent inside for his misbehavior, where he is shunned for the rest of the day. Feeling regretful, Gnome finds a thoughtful way to undo all of the problems he has caused, and the class is able to have a successful harvest. Anstee's gouache and Photoshop illustrations are full of color, energy, and life. Young children will appreciate the humor in this story and will chime in on the "No, no, Gnome!" refrain.
VERDICT A charming book for storytime and a general purchase.
Reviewed by Liz Anderson, DC Public Library
Only one student at Greenthumb Elementary disrupts everyone's gardening efforts: Gnome ignores the teacher, goes berserk with the hose, etc. But when he realizes his behavior is alienating his classmates, he becomes a garden(ing) gnome. The book is funny, playfully illustrated, and unobtrusively message-y: the multiracial cast of human and rabbit classmates unblinkingly accepts bearded, white-haired, probably-elderly Gnome as one of their own.
 , Dec 01, 2015

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