THE CONCRETE GARDEN

The art of kids being kids comes alive.

Amanda and her mother, who both present Black, are carrying a large cardboard box they’re taking down from the 15th floor. A plethora of diverse kids spill out of a packed elevator in a massive apartment complex into the early spring, “like candies from a box,” to a concrete courtyard. Reaching into the box, Amanda pulls out a rainbow’s worth of chalk and draws what appears to be the Covid-19 virus. Another kid, Jackson, adds a stem to Amanda’s drawing and turns it into a dandelion. Other children join in and create flowers, a snail, a palm tree, and balloons, every new addition filling the space. Above, Nasrin, wearing a hijab, “lonely for her mom in faraway Isfahan,” sends her a photo of the concrete garden, and it quickly goes viral. And when the rain washes away the kids’ work days later, they just rip up Amanda’s now-empty box and race the cardboard pieces in the water. There are scuffles among siblings in this story, but all told, no child ever chides another for adding to their art or putting something like an alien spaceship into the mix. Graham’s signature watercolor-and-ink illustrations bring it all to life beautifully. The subtlety of the storytelling makes a statement about art in a time of disease better than words ever could. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Deft, understated loveliness.