Bringing together animals, art, poetry and song to inspire, bring joy and wonder and emphasize the importance of all the little creatures who come into the yard under the garden gate.
Buy the Book
Click Here to Buy
![](http://<div style="border: 1px solid #DCDCDC; border-radius: 12px; padding: 15px; display: flex; width:300px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex: 45%; padding-right: 15px;"> <img src="https://image-hub-cloud.lightningsource.com/2011-04-01/Images/front_cover/x200/sku/9798218359157.jpg?viewkey=7b5780eed76ceaed31f9d587f05afcb187cef1f0a7faaa4875c00d0ff73881e8" style="width: 96px; height: auto; align-self: flex-start;" /> </div> <div style="flex: 55%;"> <div style="text-align: left; font: normal normal bold 16px/22px Open Sans; padding: 5px;"> Under the Garden Gate: Delightful true tales of an .... </div> <div style="text-align: left; font: italic normal normal 13px/18px Open Sans; padding: 5px;"> Thistle, and Thistle, </div> <div> <a href="https://shop.ingramspark.com/b/084?5MPU9xDKje0059Wq7SFxv35CBmNNeTtbnPsfalOFiJI" target="_blank" style="background: #FEBE10 0% 0% no-repeat padding-box; border-radius:8px; color:black; text-decoration:none; width: 163px; height: 34px; display: table-cell; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; font: normal normal bold 16px/22px Open Sans;">Buy Now</a> </div> </div> </div>)
Delightful true tales inspired by the comings and goings of the creatures who come into my yard, under the garden gate. The cover features Samantha, a feral cat, who had kittens under my front porch. – Thistle
“. . . The verses scan well, mostly fitting into a standard scansion and using common rhymes, easily understandable for emergent readers. Some vocabulary words (including louse, magnolia, and sauntered) may help readers stretch without ever losing sight of the subject of the poem. . . . ” – Kirkus Reviews
Also available at:
Contact Thistle to purchase an autographed/personalized book.
Buy In Stores:
Tatnuck Bookseller – Westborough, MA
Stream Online: hearnow
Thistle’s other items for sale at craft fairs/farmers markets/direct from Thistle
Who’s in the yard
Who’s in Thistle’s Yard?
Website Visitor sightings – Thanks for voting at the bottom of the page!
Large fox on the hunt.
2 bunnies hop together.
Who’s in your yard?
About
I enjoy watching the animals in my yard. One day my husband and I noticed a large cat roaming through our backyard. We assumed it was a male cat because it was big. My husband named it Sam. Several months later, there were little “mews” under our front porch. Sam gave birth to 4 kittens. Sam then became Samantha. For six weeks we brought her food and water and watched “the kitten show” every afternoon. Samantha became very trusting of us. With the help of the local cat rescue organization, we caught her and the kittens. We kept Samantha as our house cat and the rescue society found homes for the kittens.
I also enjoy art, poetry, and song. My training mainly comes from the amazing teachers of classes through community adult education programs. I use the skills I’ve learned to bring my poems about animals to life through drawing and song.
In my spare time I love to knit light lacy shawls and sweaters. I read my poems to my knitting group as I wrote them. They enjoyed them and asked for more. Soon I had enough for a book – Under the Garden Gate.
All the poems/songs/illustrations are from real events in my yard. I hope these stories inspire you to find wonder and joy in your yard.
Your bard – Thistle
Birds love to eat thistle seeds. At first glance, a thistle looks harsh with its prickly leaves and stem, but when you look closer, it is a very beautiful flower. I look beyond the surface and find beauty in everything. I hope you do as well.
Watch my interview on Fan to Fan – Access Framingham TV
Alliance of Independent Authors
Contact
You must be logged in to post a comment.