Book of the Month - July 2015 [The Bean Seed by Judith Bush and Robert Spottswood]

Review

The Bean Seed by Judith Bush & Robert Spottswood.

"The Bean Seed" by Judith Bush and Robert Spottswood, is a book I can relate to better than anything else I’ve read in my entire life.  
To those who haven’t yet read this book will think that sounds crazy – how can someone relate to a seed? 

If you take a moment to think about what a seed requires in order to grow into a strong, healthy plant, and compare it to the things a child needs to grow into a strong, healthy young adult, it is much the same thing, metaphorically speaking. 

Think of a seed that hasn’t been planted properly, with no soil and no water, left out in the sun, abused and neglected.  Now think of it not as a seed, but as a child.  Without blankets, food, water, nurture and care a child will do the same as the seed in this book.  They will start to believe that they are worthless.  That they don’t deserve the love and attention they so much desire, and that only way to survive is to take care of themselves.  They keep all their feelings inside so they don’t show weakness, they build walls so they don’t get hurt and they have developed the inability to trust that anyone else can or will look after them at this vulnerable time in their lives.

"The Bean Seed" is written in such a way that it is easy enough for a child to read with their parents as a bedtime story, or even on their own and while they may not understand it completely, they will relate with the little bean seed on some levels without really knowing it.  As the child matures and becomes more aware of the story and its meaning, it will be easier for them to comprehend as everything finally clicks in their mind.  The simplicity of it however does not mean that an adult will see it as too juvenile or think they will not be able to relate to a child's book.  It is set out with pictures and large text, and written in plain, easy to understand english, but the deeper metaphorical meaning of the book is what adults like myself will be able to take from the book, so don’t judge it by its cover. Sometimes because of the startling innocence and naivety of children’s books it allows the mind to understand things in a more profound way, there is no jargon or unnecessary complex words, just the truth written as if a child had written it themselves. 

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone, be it an adult, teen or child. For me this book was an eye opener because I had never fully been able to understand and come to terms with my feelings, and I couldn’t figure out why I don’t trust other people, why I feel the need to do things by myself, why I keep my feelings to myself and why I build so many walls.  "The Bean Seed" explains it all.  Children do these things to protect themselves, so they don’t get hurt again. It allows the reader to feel like they are not alone, that other people out there have been through a similar experience and that although the feelings they have are natural, it is okay to let go once in a while and let other people take care of you, that it’s okay to trust people again and that it is safe to grow into a strong, beautiful, healthy person that is valued and respected by those who love them. 

A beautiful story and absolutely worth a read. 

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