A gentle, probing picture book from award-winning author Kyo Maclear and celebrated illustrator Katty Maurey about the special relationship between a grandfather and his grandson, and the many traces, memories, and even ghosts with which we live
There’s a ghost in Grandpa’s garden. It leaves tracks by the path where there was once a cool, dark stream. It makes mischief by knocking over flowerpots. And sometimes, it leaves behind a gift perfect for a curious boy in the form of little treasures from times gone by.
The boy who is the narrator of this picture book loves spending time with his grandpa in the garden, enjoying the natural world, listening to memories of how things used to be, and making up stories about the friendly ghost. With Grandpa as his loving guide, the boy learns to look closely at the garden and marvel at its mysteries, to uncover the layers of history that make up this special place, and also to fashion new things from all that he has found.
Editions
Illustrator
Katty Maurey is an illustrator who has published many picture books. She is passionate about painting, sculpting, printmaking, and, most of all, marveling at the natural world. Among other distinctions, her work has been nominated for the Governor General Award in the children’s book category.
Praise
Reviews
“This quiet yet powerful book perfectly captures the emotional resonance of fleeting moments and the imprints they leave behind. Maclear’s stunning text is lengthy yet deliberately paced (“memory has a geography just like the world”), suggesting the meandering feeling of revisiting memories. Rendered in a light, earthy palette, Maurey’s dreamy gouache illustrations are a natural complement to the text, further evoking feelings of stillness, remembrance, and the strong yet gentle bonds of family. A subtle but potent look at the ephemeral nature of life—and a reminder to cherish memories.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“The sensitive treatment and outstanding illustrations warrant a recommended purchase; this is a loving story with beautiful artwork for a broad audience on the importance of grandparents and memory.”
—School Library Journal (starred review)
“This gentle meditation on change and memory by prior collaborators Maclear and Maurey (The Specific Ocean) opens with the title phrase, spoken by the work’s child narrator….a contemplative journey into a realm where past and present reside cheek-to-cheek.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Maclear’s spare lines beautifully evoke the contemplative, observational tone of the story, emphasizing the still moments when the boy and his grandpa pause to look, listen, and remember. Maurey’s foggy, shadowy paintings, full of dusty hues of pink, blue, green, and purpley gray, softly render a garden settling down into the colder seasons, with fallen leaves and branches littering the ground… A subtle yet poignant meditation on the animating power of memory… A gentle, artful, and quietly enchanting book with a matter-of-fact embrace of change and the passing of time.”
—Booklist (starred review)
““Like a leisurely, observant stroll through nature, Maclear’s spare, serene text takes a contemplative path… Ambient, atmospheric, and mysterious, There’s a Ghost in the Garden conjures connections to the past and celebrates the bond between generations.”
—Quill and Quire (starred review)
“The subtle and soulful story of a little boy who believes a ghost haunts his grandfather’s garden. In the course of trying to discern the source and nature of the ghostly presence, the boy discovers that his grandfather also had a childhood, that inside the old man lives the ghost of a long-ago boy… What emerges from the story is the intimation that forgetting is a kind of death, but we can come back from it through memory and love, which twine the lifeline tethering us to everything that is beautiful and enduring.”
—The Marginalian
“A dreamy tale, focused on sensorial observations about smells, sounds, and sights rather than plot…this book leaves a lot of room for discussion and introspection.”
—Youth Services Book Reviews (starred review)
“A soft, sensual story about the moments and mysteries that shape us. Maclear is one of my favorite writers, and Maurey is a spectacular talent—I’d frame every illustration in this book.“
—Taylor Sterling, Moonbow, “My Favorite Picture Books of 2024
“Maurey’s lush oil paintings portray the shapes, textures, and colors that unfold in layers of vegetation, thick underbrush, and tree trunks and branches found in a grandfather’s garden. The artist’s ability to capture dancing contrasts of light and shadow, depending on the time of day and the weather’s shifting temperatures, results in a transportive visual feast, and triggers both the grandfather’s memory and his visiting grandson’s imagination. Maurey’s garden invites the reader to slow down and look, then look again.”
—Caldecott Medal–winning illustrator Doug Salati, 2024 NYT/NYPL Best Illustrated Jury