Draft:The Wind's Garden

The Wind's Garden is a 2001 book by children's author Bethany Roberts, with illustrations by Melanie Hope Greenberg. Depicting a girl's observations between both her field and the titular garden, it was inspired by Roberts' real-life experiences and received positive reviews.

Synopsis
While working in her garden, a girl observes changes in the titular "wind's garden" next to her. She cultivates her field in an organized manner, while the wind opts for a method involving rain, nature, and arbitrary patterns, free of human intervention. The book is written in the first person, features gouache illustrations,  and ends with tips on garden cultivation by author Bethany Roberts.

Development
Roberts' experiences in gardening, and "her thoughts [on] how nature would tend [her field] in her place", prompted her to write The Wind's Garden.

Reception
The Wind's Garden received positive reviews. Writing for the School Library Journal, Carolyn Jenks said: "The flat, stylized [art is] colorful and cheery; however, the pictures of the field look a bit too cultivated for a wild garden. Still, this book is a fine inspiration for discussing the role of people in natural spaces." Booklist Carolyn Phelan said, "Roberts makes [the gardening process] sound mighty appealing. But the real excitement comes in the illustrations: all the waiting pays off in the riot of colorful flowers on the final pages.... A good book for reading aloud." Publishers Weekly called it "a cheery picture book.... Like the gardens themselves, Greenberg's vibrant folk-art style [work bursts] with life, from the swooping curlicues used to indicate the wind to the zinnia-bright colors of the flowers and surrounding yard." Nicholas A. Basbanes called The Wind's Garden an "engaging tribute to the many wonders of nature... From seedling to blooming flowers, [the] busy paintings illustrate the beauty of a cultivated garden, and one fashioned by nature." Kirkus Reviews opined that Greenberg's art could encourage its target audience to take up gardening.