It Starts With a Seed

Laura Knowles has a background in children’s publishing and is the author of We Travel So Far, Once Upon a Jungle, The Coral Kingdom and It Starts with a Seed, winner of the 2017 Margaret Mallett Award for Children’s Non-fiction and shortlisted for the UKLA Book Award 2018. Her love of natural history, words and art have drawn her to work on books about animals and nature.Jennie Webber is a London-based visual artist and printmaker. Her etchings and drawings celebrate the diversity and complexity of nature, reflecting her incurable curiosity for the world. Themes of conservation underpin all her work; the idea being that if people are amazed by the natural world, then they will be less likely to destroy it.

“Spare, rhyming text and detailed artwork inform readers about the life cycle of a sycamore tree, from seed to maturity—and its role in the ecosystem…While giving a general idea of how one journey from seed to tree influences an entire ecosystem, the text also emphasizes the wonder of growth—and life—itself. The tone is soothing and reverential. No hype here: understated enchantment.” – Kirkus Reviews