I'm always fascinated with teaching aids that help children understand the circle of life and how the garden operates. Insofar as I'm able I'm always trying to encourage my kids to get their hands dirty, engage in the mystery of gardening and become enamoured with creation in all its wonderful facets.

So, when I sat down last night to check over this new review book that I'd been sent it was no surprise that my youngest daughter (M. is 7 years old) was pulling at my arm for me to read it to her. The front cover illustration of "Emily the Chickadee" grabbed her attention immediately.

The author, Carol Zelaya, relates a true story that happened to her as she was growing up. The story is about a little chickadee that comes and nests in her garden, lays some eggs and then raises her chicks in the same surroundings. A bond forms between Carol, as a little girl, and the chickadee that continues through the other two books in the series Caring for Emily's Family and Emily's New Home.

It's a great little story that encourages children to engage with their environment and slow down enough to notice the detail.

The aspects of the book that I liked the most were;

• The simple rhyming storyline that encouraged my little girl to read along,
• The beautiful illustrations drawn by Kristin Metcalf, and
• The Chickadee Log at the back of the book. Children can notate when they first saw a chickadee in their garden, whether they saw it eating and what time of the year they observed it in the garden. It truly encourages kids to think about their environment and the creatures that interact with it.