And the winner is…….  #10 – Heather of the EO!  Congratulations!  Be watching for an email for your shipping information.  Thanks for your enthusiasm, everyone else!  Be watching for another giveaway from Barefoot Books sometime this month (their new title: “Shopping with Daddy”).

Barefoot Books is one of my favorite places to shop for children’s books.  After I reviewed a few of their books here, Rebecca from Barefoot contacted me and asked if I’d like to review a book and then do a giveaway.  Are you kidding??  What a fantastic opportunity for me and one lucky reader!  Details for the giveaway follow the review.

The Boy Who Grew Flowers is written by Jen Wojtowicz and illustrated by Steve Adams.  The book teaches acceptance of others by demonstrating that what makes us different, also makes us beautiful.  It’s also a wonderful story of true friendship.  The author was inspired to write the book based on her experiences with her brother who has autism.

Rink is a quiet, shy little boy who has a very unique family.  His uncle tames rattlesnakes, his grandmother was raised by wolves and his mother uses a bowling ball bag for a purse (awesome!).  Rink’s “secret” is that when the moon is full, flowers sprout all over his body.  Because of their differences, the family lives far away from others on the top of Lonesome Mountain.  Rink doesn’t have any friends at school and other kids whisper about him.  Then, one day, Angelina arrives from Tuscaloosa with “an easy manner and a luminous smile.”  Angelina and Rink are drawn to each other and Rink soon learns that Angelina has unique qualities of her own.

The illustrations in this book are absolutely gorgeous and Jenna exclaimed over each page.  Our copy of the book arrived just today, and she has already requested to read it three times.  The text is a bit “wordy” for small children (Barefoot lists the age range as 4-8), but full of wonderful imagery and vocabulary (Jenna’s been repeating “Tuscaloosa” all day).  I read through the story and then easily paraphrased it, pointing out things in the pictures that supported the text, and Jenna was enthralled.  Overall, I think this is an excellent book for teaching about kindness, acceptance and true friendship.  I think you’ll love it!

To enter to win a copy of this book, simply visit the Barefoot Books website and leave a message in the comments section telling me which book you would choose for your child.  One reader who follows these directions will be chosen via random number generator and notified via email.  Contest ends at 6 p.m. EST on Tuesday, September 9. You must provide a valid email address and respond to prize notification within 3 days. After 3 days, your prize will be forfeited and another winner will be notified. Comments that do not follow the guidelines listed above will be deleted. Contest is open to readers with a valid U.S. shipping address.