Nutmeg and Barley: A Budding Friendship

This is a very endearing story about friendship. The artwork is great, and the characters are lovable. My 3-1/2 year old daughter kept wanting to check this book out at the library until I broke down and bought it for her!

"Nutmeg and Barley: A Budding Friendship" is a beautiful tale of friendship from the author/illustrator who brought us a tale about a pig who didn't like to get dirty, but had trouble finding friends. Nutmeg is a squirrel and Barley is a mouse. The two don't seem to have much in common, at least not at first. Nutmeg lives up in a tree and loves being with friends and dancing. Barley is more of a quiet type and scurries about the ground. The two are neighbors and Nutmeg seems to be interested in a friendship, but finds it difficult to charm Barley, or at least she thinks so. The theme of "Nutmeg and Barley" is that sometimes you don't have to have so many common interests to have a friendship --- what you need is kindness and thoughtfulness. It's a lesson I know myself. Bynum's story is expressed with warmth and charm. The illustrations are soft pastel and the text seems to be great for a storytime or for parents to read to kids.

This book is beautifully drawn with clear pictures and plenty of detail. A key feature of the story which really hooked my 3-1/2 year old is that Barley the mouse catches a cold and Nutmeg the squirrel comes to take care of him. Depth in the story includes not jumping to conclusions about others, perseverance in trying to make friends, and understanding and accepting differences. This book has staying power--a real winner.

Nutmeg And Barley: A Budding Friendship is a sweet, gentle story of two very different friends: a mouse and squirrel who assume they have little in common but who find their different styles leads to a friendship which has more to do with kindness than similarities. Gentle pictures illustrate a warm story of evolving understanding.

We do hear that opposites attract, but Nutmeg and Barley aren't at all sure about that. Nutmeg is one of the most chattering squirrels you'll ever see. A favorite pastime for Nutmeg is visiting with friends while perched in the branches of a tree. Barley is a quiet little mouse, a neighbor of Nutmeg's, who makes it obvious that he'd rather be alone. Solitaire is his game, and working in his garden his pleasure. Despite several invitations from Nutmeg he insists that he's either too busy or has something very important to do. Nutmeg decided to give up on him, thinking that they had absolutely nothing in common. However, when Nutmeg didn't see Barley for a day or two she became worried about him. When she went to his house she found him in bed, very ill. Well, the never-met-a-stranger squirrel turned into Florence Nightingale and nursed Barley back to health. When young readers find out what happens next they'll learn what a little kindness can do. Exuberant watercolor illustrations help to tell this story of the meaning of friendship. - Gail Cooke