Avocado Magic

by Taltal Levi (Author)

Avocado Magic
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

"A tender and cozy tribute to the magic of growing up." -Kirkus Reviews

Avocado seeds and slow growing! A young girl's impatience turns to wonder as she and her avocado tree gradually change and grow in this story inspired by Israeli artist Taltal Levi's childhood.

Ellie is sulking--she celebrated her birthday yesterday under the old avocado tree. But she's not even a little bit taller today! Dad tells Ellie a secret. She is like the pit of an avocado, he explains, small and full of magic. Together they put an avocado seed in a glass of water by the window and watch as both Ellie and her avocado plant grow, take root, and eventually bring new life.

In Taltal Levi's native country Israel, avocados are ubiquitous and plucked straight from the tree. In her third book, Taltal Levi uses warm, earthy colors to tell a personal yet universal story about the magic of growth. Includes instructions for growing your own avocado tree!

Select format:
Hardcover
$19.95

Kirkus

A tender and cozy tribute to the magic of growing up.

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 3--The morning after her birthday, Ellie is dismayed that she hasn't grown overnight. Her father offers her an avocado seed and the promise of magic to come with time, patience, and sunlight. Illustrations, with hues alternating between earthy and a green/yellow palette, underscore themes of growth and change and are replete with whimsical details to delight eagle-eyed readers! Ellie waits as her seed--and she--eventually grow. Her avocado tree, over time becoming fully grown, accompanies Ellie's own transformation from child to woman to mother and brings the narrative to a gratifying close. The impatience of children, a well-documented feature of the demographic, gets a measured treatment here. There are layers of lessons about the passage of time to be found in text and illustration, as both the pages and Ellie's life fly by. VERDICT A poignant and lovely volume, this one is recommended for all collections.--Rebecca Kirshenbaum

Copyright 2024 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

It's not everyday that a book makes me cry. This is one of them. I was initially drawn to the illustrations, which are beautiful, and the fact that it's about avocados, my favorite. But the story is what really hooked me. It's about a little girl named Ellie, who is impatient to grow. Through growing her own avocado plant she learns patience. I definitely just pre-ordered it as I need it to be a part of my library.—Chelsea G., Seattle Public Schools
Taltal Levi
Taltal Levi was born in the Galilee, Israel. She graduated from Lucerne University of Arts and Design with a degree in illustration fiction and has worked as a freelance illustrator since. In 2019 she was nominated for the Serafina Young Talent Award with her picture book debut A Little Courage. Taltal Levi works and lives in Basel, Switzerland.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780735844988
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Northsouth Books
Publication date
March 05, 2024
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV013030 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Multigenerational
JUV039020 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Adolescence
JUV029040 - Juvenile Fiction | Science & Nature | Flowers & Plants
Library of Congress categories
Picture books
Fathers and daughters
Growth
Avocados

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