Where Wonder Grows

Review
By Kirkus Reviews

Celebrate the wondrous stories that exist all around thanks to the marvels stored in rocks.

A group of dreamers follows Grandma to her special garden. They spread a plush blanket upon the ground and gather the “magic rocks and relics from nature.” The young dreamers sit and wonder as Grandma holds the rocks in her hands, calling on the fiery wisdom of the ancestors molded into testaments of time. What about “the ones with super powers?” ask the dreamers. Grandma takes a crystal—shot through with shades of plum and streaks of cerulean—and speaks of curanderas who harness the healing powers of “quartz of all kinds.” Next, consider the might of coral reefs and shells, deep in the depths where water smooths even the most stubborn rock. Grandma and her dreamers then ponder the meteorites in their hands, envisioning the arcs that these starry fragments undertook to arrive on Earth. Expanding on the infinite flights of fancy unearthed in All Around Us (2017), González (Tap Pilam Coahuiltecan Nation) and Garcia’s latest enchanting collaboration plumbs deeper into the natural curiosities that shape readers’ earthly realities. It’s a sweet summoning emboldened by González’s starry-eyed text, an assortment of phrases and statements that gesture toward the promise found in young readers everywhere. Garcia’s muralist background lends itself here to striking, gorgeous artwork that embodies a whimsical sense of cosmic compassion. Overall, the art showcased in this hopeful manifesto soars.

Simply dazzling.