“Avocado Magic” by Taltal Levi was such a sweet and inspirational story for children! The illustrations are beautifully done with warm colors and soft lines. It’s a comfortable book for any child to curl up with!

The story begins with a kindergartener named Ellie who’s upset that she isn’t growing faster despite becoming a year older. Her father tells her she’s like an avocado seed – small but full of magic. He then walks Ellie through the steps of how to grow an avocado tree. Ellie is quite impatient for the seed to sprout and grow, but her father keeps reminding her to be patient and wait for the magic to happen. As the avocado tree slowly grows, so does Ellie, and the story follows her and her tree as the years pass by.

I would highly recommend this book to younger children. The pictures alone will hold their attention, but the story is a wonderful tool for parents and teachers to use to explain the importance of patience – and to possibly use the instructions to start their own avocado tree!

Thank you to NetGalley and NorthSouth Books for the opportunity to read an advanced reader's copy of this book for an honest review.

Very sweet story about patience and remembering that growth is always taking place especially within us even if we don't see it. Cute illustrations!

A girl named Ellie is upset about not growing fast enough so her dad has her learn about patience through the growth of an avocado seed. They patiently water it and watch it grow - very slowly.

This was a cute story and picture book, focusing on growing up, patience, and that sometimes things just take time. I liked how it all came together, with teh age progression of Ellie and her avocado seed/plant/ tree. The book was vibrant and fun. Illustraions were flowing and really pretty.

I think that as she ages with the avocado and grows up, some nuance might be lost on some younger readers that she has a lovely tree for her kids... and that she has fully grown up. Maybe not though.

The book also included avocado seed instructions and care.

What a lovely book. The illustrations flow seamlessly with the story. It has a good message, and children will enjoy it.

This is a very sweet and simple children's book that teaches the value of patience and hidden potential. The highlight for me was absolutely the illustrations. They are gorgeous and warm and vibrant and will definitely be eye-catching to young children.

Overall I thought the message good but I wanted something a little more from it, something a bit deeper. I also thought the ending with Ellie growing up and moving out was a bit rushed and not explained in a very clear way. I did love the instruction on planting your own avocado seed, I think that's something that kids (and adults!) would love to do.

Thank you NorthSouthBooks for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Ellie is impatient to grow and her father used the seed of an avocado to gently remind her that growth is happening all the time, even if you can't see it or even if it takes a long time for the changes to be seen

I had been in the past couple of weeks in a really bad reading slump for myself and when I get like this and I am screaming out for books to read, I give myself something quick to read and I know I had a couple of picture books left on my Netgalley shelf to read and review. Avocado Magic by Taltal Levi was one of them and after reading this book, I guarantee it will give you and other readers a new appreciation for the Avocado which is often a tasteless food. In Avocado Magic by Taltal Levi, it is Ellie's birthday. She goes to bed all excited but when she wakes up in the morning, she is disappointed as even though she is now a whole year older, she doesn't feel any different than she did the day before. Nothing has changed, how can a birthday and being a year older not make any significant change? Her Dad, seeing Ellie is down gives her an Avocado seed to nurture and grow and explains that just like this process can be slow and steady with a little bit of everyday joy and magic in our lives, we can grow to be amazing just like the avocado from seed to ready to eat. The moral of this book is that we all need a little Avocado Magic in our lives and to appreciate the small moments and joy in our everyday lives though it might not be obvious to the naked eye, great and amazing things are happening in the background. Also included at the end of this book are instructions on how to grow your own Avocado from seed. This picture book with its beautiful illustrations is perfect for children aged 6-10 years old.

Do you remember how impatient most of us were to "grow up"? This is a lovely story of how one loving father showed his daughter how not to get in a rush. The illustrations are lovely, peaceful looking with an almost golden/sunny feel to them. There are also directions at the end on how to grow/sprout your own avocado.

Ellie's birthday was exciting but she's disappointed to find that her feet still don't touch the floor when seated in the kitchen. When she shares the disappointment with her father, he's wise enough to show, not tell her, how slow growth can be by using something familiar to her. After all, they celebrated her birthday under an avocado tree, so what better thing to use. A simple avocado seed. Initially frustrated at seeing no immediate growth, her father reminds Ellie that the magic within takes time and works best if patiently nurtured. Some cute scenes of her ideas for nurturing it mirror ways parents may nurture and love their own children, a subtle note, but there. We follow Ellie until her feet finally touch the floor and beyond, always with her avocado near. Finally, we see her as an adult with her own family, sharing her father's wisdom with her own child under her now avocado tree. In other words, a sweet story of a father's love and nurturing as passed on to his own child, Ellie, who continues the traditions with her own family under the now tall, strong avocado tree she nurtured.

As always, I more or less went through the story initially simple to enjoy the illustrations. They do an excellent job of telling the story, actually, and a clever reader/child can almost come up with their own story simply by looking at the illustrations. The author illustrated the book herself, btw. As a parent, it's the perfect story to use with a child who despairs of ever growing up. For the child, of course, growing up initially means physically while the father and readers can see how much more is involved and shown through Ellie's life. While there isn't a huge amount of action or, for that matter, obvious humor, perhaps the story is all the stronger for those very reasons. Thank you #NetGalley and #NorthSouthBooks for sharing Ellie's avocado story with me. I thoroughly enjoyed it and am still smiling at the sense of sunshine/gold in the illustrations. This one is for all parents and would make a lovely gift to new parents, I'd think.

Growing pains aren't just about physical changes. It's also about the urge for freedom, wanting your thoughts to matter, and essentially, having a voice – something that can be tough even for adults. This book becomes inspiring also for grown-ups feeling hopeless about self-fulfillment. It's about the rush to achieve something, feeling stuck in the age when kids don't realize that life is more about enjoying the journey. This feeling might make children miss out on the beauty of their current age and ultimately feel unsatisfied no matter what they achieve later. They're always longing for something more attainable, unable to find contentment within themselves, waiting for something to happen instead of appreciating the present. In my childhood, stories often portrayed growing up as something that happens gradually over time, emphasizing the importance of patience and the beauty of the journey using the metaphor of a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. Patience was key; without it, reaching the true potential of something wasn't possible.

This book conveys a similar message, but it uses an avocado instead of a butterfly, which seems more fitting. While perceptions of time might vary, the essence remains: 'Everything needs time to mature.' Some children might struggle to relate to a butterfly due to their short lifespan or the time it takes to transform. This might hinder their understanding of the story's intended message. In Turkey, choosing an avocado might seem odd as it's relatively new to our tables. However, it has been grown for years in cities along the Mediterranean coast and, albeit slowly, is gaining popularity in other cities too. Despite the belief that avocados are imported and not grown here, some fellow countrymen have been harvesting avocados from their gardens for years. So, this book could help instill awareness among readers in my country as well.

Taltal Levi's 'Avocado Magic' is an illustrated book dedicated to those rushing through the process of growing up. It successfully achieves its purpose, whether taken literally or metaphorically. The illustrations and the story parallel the child's growth with that of an avocado. However, unlike a child, when an avocado seed is planted, there's a sense of acceptance, a calmness about its current stage. On the other hand, you see impatience in the child, unable to cope with disappointment, showing a tendency to cause harm. Yet, with the calm approach of an adult – which is crucial as reacting to negative behavior sets a bad example – the child accepts the journey and shares it with the avocado. When the child pauses to enjoy the moment, much like an avocado basking in the sun, it demonstrates the effectiveness of this approach. And when the awaited day arrives, it shows that the wait was indeed worth it, portraying the fruition of time.

Additionally, the expectations the child has about the avocado, depicted in one of the pages, intrigued me. It reminded me of how we sometimes project our desires onto things unintentionally, much like what adults might have expected from us when we were kids. However, an avocado seed has limitations on what it can become. Yes, it'll eventually turn into something beautiful, but only if it chooses the right path. This suggests that aligning our lives with our talents and interests is key to realizing our true potential and encountering a happier, more evolved society.

Another significant aspect is how the book suggests that a child, dealing with a situation through a metaphor, might share it with peers. It indicates that any impact on a child's life can create a chain reaction. In the wrong hands, it can undoubtedly turn into something harmful, which is never our intention.

Sometimes, we forget that we only get one shot at life and rush through it. We put in so much effort to reach somewhere that we forget to appreciate the journey. Amidst all kinds of tension, stress, and sorrow, I sometimes notice this in myself when I take a moment to listen to my inner voice. Then, I put everything aside and focus on something I'd regret not doing later. That's my way of getting through tough moments.

After two wonderful successes, this Levi book didn't really do much for me. It's about a girl impatient to grow – she measures her success by whether she can touch the ground with her toes when sat on her breakfast chair – and so is given an avocado stone to nurture. Oddly enough this doesn't exactly burst into life and growth overnight, either – so the girl is distracted, and we watch the two grow up together, but would something like this appeal to a younger version of me? I don't think it would have done. And that's not just because I hate avocados…

A wonderful message and a spectacular art about growth. This book is engaging and the color scheme is calming to the eyes.

This is a beautiful book. The story talks about growth of the avocado seed and how it takes love and patience to thrive just as it does when we are children growing. It's a great lesson to learn when you're young and want something to happen immediately but you have to wait. Avocado trees don't grow over night, and a lot of life relies on being patient. This book has a great message for children and adults!

The illustrations were gorgeous, they showed the story perfectly.

But a cute story. I think this is amazing how this girl named E l I e loved avocados so much. Her father was very patient with her because she really wanted to be grown up. So they planted an avocado Seed In water. Her father said this was gonna be magic. So she went off to school but she was very upset when she came home and nothing happened to the avocado. Her father said be patient. So the book was really interesting. How this avocado grew up with her through her different changes in life. Also like how the book showed how to make this avocado Grow in water and then transplant it to soil. The pictures were amazing because it was interesting to see how she grew up also with the avocado tree. This book shows patients can pay off in the She told the same Story to her son

"You are like an avocado seed:
small but full of magic."

This is story about potential in the smallest things, growing up, and avocados. Such a simple and warm story with beautiful illustrations!

Thank you, NetGalley and NorthSouth Books for providing me this cute eARC!

Such a heart-warming and beautiful story about family and love told through avocadoes! The story truly exceeded my imagination. The colors are vibrant but also nostalgic. If I am reading this at a young age, I would never forget about this.

This is a warm story with lovely and moralistic conversations between a girl and her father.

Being child, Ellie was worried that her birthday passed but her height didn't vary. She complained her father about it. Here comes the parenting. Her Father took a realistic approach to let her understand the fact for how things work in real life. There is a miracle in life in everything but can't be seen through naked eyes. He had shown her the way an avocado seed nourishes under sunlight, dipped in water.

She thoughly understand the process and enjoy while it started sprouting. They have to move the plant from one to another place and then eventually transplant the tree to a bigger feild, with time. She became older but that fact remains and she passes on the knowledge and its pattern to grasp, to her children also.

This is an amazing work by Taltal Levi, and I wonder how exciting it would be to her, as the excerpt says, it was inspired from her own childhood.

I did not expect this book to make me cry- but here we are!

First of all, the illustrations of this book are absolutely stunning. That was what initially drew me in and I was not disappointed!

The story itself is lovely, and an excellent lesson about showing patience and how some things take time. As a parent some parts definitely tugged on my heart strings more than I expected. I am looking forward to sharing this one with my daughter at bedtime!

This is a lovely little story about the patience that comes with growth. In this story, Ellie, a little girl eager to grow up, is guided by her father, and an avocado is chosen as an example of progress. She learns how to care for the avocado pit, which turns into a plant, while she herself is also growing up providing new life to the world. I love the meaningful message it conveys and the illustrations are very cute. :)

Thanks Netgalley and publisher!

There is nothing particularly special about Avocado Magic. You can probably find a dozen books like it about being patient and waiting for things (and kids) to grow. This story takes us from our little girl being very young, all the way up to having her own children.

I’m not a fan of stories that go this far into adulthood. I think this extended view into a child’s future places expectations on the child. In this case the idea is that the child will also have children. In todays society I feel this assumption is not appropriate or truthful anymore. Between fertility issues, miscarriages, and premature babies, I just don’t see why we are setting little girls (or boys) up with the expectation they will have a baby of their own. For myself, this expectation when I was young was very hurtful later in life when I learned (in my early 20s) I couldn’t carry to term. It took me awhile to realize I only thought I wanted a baby because everyone assumed I would. But as an infertile woman, I began to realize I wasn’t obsessed with having a baby; everyone else was. That gave me space to accept my infertility in a new way. Had the expectation not been so ingrained in me as a child to have a baby, I believe I could have avoid a lot of grief and confusion as an adult.

That said, this book is similar to so many in its set-up and execution. So I suppose if avocados are your absolute favourite, or your child’s favourite, then this could be a good choice. I don’t get the avocado craze of the last couple years personally; they are tasty but not worthy of being on my socks, toys, etc. I’d personally pass on this one as it just doesn’t provide anything new or interesting to a child’s repertoire or library.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

A little girl is frustrated that she is not growing bigger right after having a birthday. Her father has her grow an avocado tree from a seed to show how you might not always see it, but they are both always growing.

I thought this was a cute book to demonstrate patience and how growing takes time. The illustrations were beautiful and colorful. My three year old said she liked the pictures of the seed and girl growing together the most. I really liked that instructions for growing your own avocado seed at home are included for a fun project.

I think my three year old was on the younger side for understanding this book. I would think age 4-8 is probably a good age range for "Avocado Magic." We talked about how she grows just a tiny bit every day and she did grasp that. Love the concepts of the story, and especially the end. I would read more books from Levi in the future! I received this book as an ARC for my opinions.