An engagingly told story of a basketball player that decided to improve communities through community gardens.

In this beautifully illustrated short story, we see the message and impact that former basketball star Will Allen contributed to exposing communities and families to healthy foods and living. The contents of this book are actually incredibly informative and can be used in a health or nutrition lesson within a classroom setting. It talks about good soil, the nutrition it brings, and even how anyone can foster a table with healthy foods. If not incorporated into the curriculum, this is a book that I see students and children of all ages reading by themselves or with friends.

This book would be great for late intermediate readers or early middle readers as it is text heavy. The font is small but there are variations of size and color throughout, putting an empahsis on some of the words. There are great illustrations to go alongside the text and a positive representation of farmers. It is also very informative about how farms work, what is grown, and how it is handled from farm to table. ( )

The story of Will Allen is a great way for children to understand about growing fruits and vegetable in the city. The book explains about composting and growing food in small spaces.

This book tells the true story of Will Allen, a former professional basketball player who started a community garden and became an "urban farmer" in the city of Milwaukee. The book introduces the concepts of community gardens and composting with worms, while also telling the story of how Will brought fresh fruit and vegetables to his urban community and taught the people of the city to be farmers. He continued to teach people about urban farming and traveled all over the world to spread his message, and the author even includes a note from Will about urban farming and becoming a future farmer. The book conveys a great message about the importance of community and also introduces important information about the processes that goes into growing your own food. The illustrations also convey this theme of community and support, but also show diversity in all of the individuals that come together to learn from Will and build this urban farming community. In my biology II class, my students grew their own fruits and vegetables and planted them in the local community garden. Next year, I would really like to introduce my students to Will Allen's story at the beginning unit in order to get my students excited about working in the community garden and urban farming. ( )