Author Susan Swiat paid a visit to Circleville Elementary School recently, sharing her book, Grandpa’s Garden, with several of the younger classes. Swiat, a retired physical therapist who once worked for the Pine Bush School District, wrote the book about her grandson, BJ, who just didn’t like vegetables.

 

His grandpa asks BJ to help him plant a garden and that is the beginning of a big change for BJ. He is excited to help his grandpa nurture the garden and even more excited when the garden starts to produce vegetables. At his grandpa’s gentle urging, BJ tries some of the vegetables he himself grew and that changes everything.

 

 

Swiat talked to the students about the illustrations and explained that the illustrators asked her for photos of her grandson and her husband so they could draw the characters to look like them.

Swiat read the book to the students and discussed how they felt about vegetables. One students in Denise Hanson’s class asked what it was like to be an author. “It’s exciting!” Swiat answered. “But it’s also a  lot of hard work but very rewarding.” Swiat handed out coloring sheets for the students so they could color their very own garden.

 

 

“This book was a labor of love for me,” said Swiat. It’s also a great help in encouraging picky eaters to indulge in healthy vegetables!