Book Guide: Timmy Kent and the Mysterious Carrots
What if we were to grow vegetables in the whole school yard?
Timmy loves both fruit and vegetables. They should be allowed to grow everywhere! But is it forbidden to plant seeds anywhere? And can you go to jail if you happen to do it?
Questions about the book
1. Timmy Kent thinks it would be nice to have a vegetable garden at school. What would you like to grow at your school?
2. Timmy Kent takes seeds and plants them without asking. Have you done something without asking? How did it feel?
3. Timmy Kent gets worried that he made a mistake. He talks about his thoughts with his older sibling. Do you have someone you can talk to about things you're worried about?
4. Look at the picture in Timmy Kent's room (pages 18 – 19). Can you guess what things he likes to do? Can one see what you like by looking at your room?
5. Look at the class photo. Who do you think is most like you? Maybe someone who has the same color shirt or a hairstyle that is similar to yours?
6. Timmy Kent has a butterfly hair clip? Do you ever have anything in your hair? If you could have a hair clip with something on it that you particularly like, what would it be? Maybe an ice cream? Or a football?
7. Timmy Kent thinks his assistant Rosa is funny. Do you know someone you think is funny? How is someone fun to be with?
8. Timmy Kent likes many different fruits, berries and vegetables. Do you have a favorite fruit? Do you have a favorite vegetable? Do you know how they grow and are cultivated?
Investigate! Find out together how your various favorite fruits and vegetables grow and where they are grown. Can they grow in Sweden?
About disability
In children's books, children with various visible disabilities are often missing. When those who violate the functional norm are included, it is often about the fact that there is something problematic about deviating from the norm. At the end of the book, the moral is that the child with functional variation is just as good as other children, after all. There is also an idea that books where the child has a visible disability are mainly interesting for the children who can recognize themselves. That idea means that those who violate the norm get to practice identifying with those who meet the norm, while the opposite does not happen. It easily leads to different treatment and a lack of empathy. In this book, Timmy has an assistant and down syndrome, but neither of these are the focus of the plot. The book is instead about growing and about breaking the rules.
About cultivation
Even though many people still think of a man when they think of a farmer, the more everyday cultivation and care for nature and the environment is something that is mainly linked to women and the feminine. The reason is that the focus is not on supply, large scale and machines, but rather the actions are interpreted as "funny". In this book, it is Timmy who gets to take an interest in his immediate environment, fruit and cultivation, and he thereby mirrors children who share that interest. Knowledge and interest in farming can also provide an understanding of cycles and is a good way to approach climate issues, sustainability and global issues.
