The Carrot Seed

By Ruth Krauss 

Pictures by Crockett Johnson

 I can’t believe this flimsy little paperback has survived so many years.  While the book was written in 1945 this is my Scholastic copy from 1971.  I quickly marked it with my names as you can see in the photo below.  

 The text and illustrations are both so simple, yet the message is so profound.  A little boy plants a carrot seed but his mother, father, and big brother all tell him it probably won’t come up.  Each day the little boy carefully waters the seed and pulls up the weeds.  Time passes and it seems as if his family was right.  Still, the little boy continues to care for the seed.  Then - what do you know - one day a carrot comes up – just as the little boy knew it would! 

I think my mother gave me this book because everyone in my house was older, bigger, stronger, smarter, and faster than little me.  What came so easily for the big brothers and sisters seemed impossible to do.  Fortunately for me, unlike the boy in this book, my family wasn’t outwardly discouraging.  I don’t remember being told I couldn’t do something.  I just remember feeling like I would never be able to go as fast and do the things that they could do.  

What this book taught me is the importance of perseverance and patience.  Keep at it little by little– keep nurturing the tiny seed, even if the results aren’t yet obvious. One day you might be surprised with a “carrot” of your own!