Wow! First of all, can we talk about the illustrations? Reminiscent of Eric Carle's "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" with a slightly more watercolour feel, they are eye-catching, bright, bold, detailed and just gorgeous. They really bring the text to life, making the book easy to understand for younger ones, and informative for older ones.

The actual text of the book was fascinating. I recently read "Gut" by Giulia Enders and this was like a scaled down, children's version of that. So informative (I even learned a few things) without being too difficult or complicated. It brought the world of your inner flora to life in a fun way! This is an absolute must read for everyone as it is so important to look after the garden in your tummy!

Gorgeous illustrations and very informative, but on a level kids can understand. I may have even learned a thing or two! Great way to have kids understand from a young age that what you eat influences your body and how you feel.

A wonderful description of the gut biome, diversity, and how we acquire it. The book also goes on to mention how to maintain the diversity of the gut and the connections. The language is perfectly suited for the young audience. The paintings add to the charm without distracting from the learning through out the text. .Comparison of gut biota of humans and tiger, for example, would have been more impactful for the young readers. Side bars and introducing some science nomenclature and definitions would have added more opportunities to extend reading and practice some STEM comprehension skills.

I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did, but I really enjoyed it. The illustrations were whimsy and fun. The use of color was really wonderful and I liked the personalities of all the microbiomes. They were so cute and the illustration held so much detail that you could really look for quite a time and find something new. It was really well written and kept my attention throughout with different facts about gut health. This was just an innovative book and idea.

What an original way to teach youngsters about taking care of themselves and their gut health. So often kids are taught the physicality of taking care of their bodies, but the inner workings are skipped over. This book's gentle watercolors and story of the tummy garden offer an understandable way to visualize what is going on in there.

This is a very pretty book and the information given in the back of the book is great. However, as a read this book I was hoping for more. I felt that it could have been a great book, but I found it hard to connect what it was saying on the page to what was happening inside me. As an adult, I get it, because I already know what a microbiome is, but I feel like this book was good, but had much more potential and didn't do what it could have. Loved the illustrations.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book. All opinions are my own and posted on Netgalley, Goodreads, and Instagram.

This children's book is a nonfiction read about the science of the microbes in our guts. It's an educational read wrapped up in beautifully illustrated watercolors. As the description says, the illustrations help convey information that can be a bit "too gross," but the information isn't compromised by this attempt to keep it clean. I saw some reviews question the necessity for such a book for the age group, but I think it's pretty great! There is value in adding to the large library of children's books out there, especially when they offer education on subjects that get glossed over because they might be "gross" or hard to understand. Knowing how the body functions is imperative for health and general understanding of biology, and I would suggest this book for schools, libraries + children's home libraries.

PS -- Book illustrations just keep getting better and better. The art included in this book is amazing. Truly great talent out there!

A Garden in Your Belly is such a fun and informative way to teach children about the digestive system. The illustrations were beautiful and whimsical and I loved the comparison to a garden that is being tended. My daughter was absolutely fascinated by the entire book.

The illustrations are marvelous in this book! My daughter is very interested in the human body and learning about it. She found this very interesting, learning about our gut! Would make a great book to supplement with health for homeschool.

This is a fun and beautiful portrayal of some very important inhabitants of our body and their functions that is frequently hard to describe to both children and adults without revulsion. The imagery is whimsical and begs for more viewings. The book is educational without sounding forced for little children.

A Garden in my Belly is an eye catching informative book all about microbes. It is engaging as the pictures and words paint such a vivid picture of the microbes that live in everyone’s bellies. I’m always looking for science books to share with little ones this definitely makes the list.

I really loved this book! My five year old daughter is very interested in the human body and enjoyed the beautiful pictures and easy to understand information about biomes! She is very sensitive and gets scared easily, so I had to skim over some of the parts about the “bad guys.”

Cute pictures, great info, maybe a bit scary for some, but easy to modify/skip through.

In this simple nonfiction book for young children, microbes in the human digestive system are introduced using the metaphor of a garden in one’s stomach. The narrative uses simple language to describe the intestinal biome: “Most microorganisms help your body do things it cannot do by itself. They protect you…every minute…” The watercolor illustrations show a “river” filled with alien-like creatures with eyes, some with antennae, multiple legs, and in a variety of colors. The end of the book contains fuller descriptions of the microbiome but the book would have benefitted from a realistic diagram of the stomach and intestines. This will work as a supplementary resource, as a way to introduce the subject, but report writers will need more information.

A Garden in Your Belly was not only an informative book on the human digestive system, but it was beautiful! The text was written in a way that is accessible to younger students yet still provides accurate, detailed information. The supporting images were helpful in gaining understanding and so colorful and engaging as well. The scientific vocabulary and message about how healthy eating is beneficial to your entire body was shared in a supportive way without being preachy. Whether kids fully understand the job of microbiomes in their bodies, they will have gained important information about healthy eating and viewed wonderful supporting illustrations.

Such an informative picture book on the microbes that thrive and function in our body!

The illustration is so amazing! The colour hues remind me of beautiful dreams and fairy tales! So well done I would say!

This picture book aims to educate kids (and the adults reading this!) about the microbiome and how they are important.

The book is interactive, short and fun. And so colourful that it wakes up your senses. So apt for anyone reading it.

The fun facts towards the end are really informative and fun to go through.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

A welcome addition, as children need more books that demonstrate the importance of eating healthy, now more than ever. The book is most notable for the vibrant watercolor illustrations. The colors pop off the page and should hold the attention of most children despite a subject that might not appeal to everyone but is absolutely critical. The text itself imparted new knowledge, like the fact that the food you eat truly affects your mood. The author, Masha D'yans, doesn't just stop by reciting this fact but goes on to explain that if you feed your body junk food, bad bacteria may take over. So, it reminds children to go for fruits, veggies, nuts and yogurt instead. I recommend this book because it will captivate with color, teach science, and encourage healthy eating choices.

My thanks to Netgalley and publisher for a digital copy in exchange for my review. Beautifully illustrated, this will spark the curiosity of children who love to ask ‘what?’ and ‘why?’ It explains about our microbiome very well for a young audience. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy a copy. Very happy to rate this 5/5 stars for its appealing content and cover.

A Garden in Your Belly is a fantastic book. The illustrations are beautiful, and the way it explains how the microbiome in our bodies works is amazing! I love that it explains everything in a fun and simple way, that appeals to both children and adults. It is not overly "kiddish" but yet it is easy to understand. At the end, it has a glossary and "gut facts" which I find extremely useful. As a Kindergarten teacher, I'm always on the look for books like this one. It is not a storybook per se, but it has the feel of a story. I would definitely recommend this to fellow teachers and parents of little ones with inquisitive minds!

This nonfiction picture book is an artful and scientifically accurate introduction to the microbiome, and I greatly enjoyed it. I am extremely impressed with how well the author presented this unusual topic for children, and she clearly explains the significance of microbes and how they affect our physical and emotional health. This is a great book for children and adults to enjoy, and the illustrations are fanciful, vibrant, beautiful, and memorable.

This is a beautiful picture book with lush watercolor illustrations (reminiscent of Eric Carle's artwork) throughout. A Garden in Your Belly introduces the concept of the intestinal biome and the concept that each of us has a unique combination of trillions of microbes in our biome. This book does a great job of making some very complicated ideas easy to understand. For example, the intestines are portrayed as a “long and winding river”. This book would best in an in elementary- level class discussion of human body functions. The vocabulary is complicated, even when D’yans uses non- technical terminology (she calls the microbes “critters” at one point).

There are hundreds of questions young learners will want to ask after listening to this book: how do microbes affect thoughts and feelings? Why does junk food make unhealthy microbes grow? How do babies get more microbes as they grow older? An expert science teacher can use this book to make strong cross-curricular connections between biology and language arts. This book walks a fine line between being entertaining and adequately explaining the microbiome. For the most part, it does a good job of achieving its goal. This is a must-buy for elementary school libraries.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free electronic ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.