By Carol Hinz
Editorial Director, Millbrook Press

Back in February, I blogged about the new book Garbage Helps Our Garden Grow: A Compost Story. I promised then that it wouldn’t be the last time I wrote about the book, and I have something special today, just in time for Earth Day (April 22).The photographs in the book follow one family through the course of a year. Until they became involved with the book, they didn’t actually have a compost bin or a garden, and now they have both. The experience of being involved with the book meant a lot to the family, and here is how they describe it, in their own words. Mia (9 years old):
Composting is fun! Dirt, worms, more dirt, more worms! We know a lot about recycling from school and I am proud that our family has a compost bin. That way we have less garbage to haul away, and we are taking care of Mother Earth.

Arden (7 years old):
Dumping stuff into the compost bin – cool!!!
Turning the compost pile – fun!!
Worms – yuck!!!Bob (Dad):
Putting the nutrients back into the soil where they came from is as natural as natural can be. Our compost bin has an insatiable appetite for all matter organic. We no longer wonder where to dump all of those leaves! It’s another family pet, and its care and feeding takes just minutes per week.

Andrea (Mom):
Returning our fruit, vegetable, and organic yard waste back to the Earth to a space where new fruits and vegetables will eat and flourish is an extremely fulfilling cycle. Our family feels less wasteful when we have to discard fruits or vegetables that did not get eaten in their prime. Somehow knowing that it will be the food of our future fruits and vegetables makes it feel not so wasteful. Kind of like getting a second chance.