Book Review - Seed Savers, Book 3 Heirloom

In this third installment of the Seed Savers series by Sandra Smith, the action amps up a bit. Clare and Dante are safely installed in Canada after their harrowing adventure north on their bicycles. They are intent on learning all they can about gardening and growing their own food.

Lily is on the run - south, to see if she can discover the truth of her father and his incarceration for being the leader of the Seed Saver movement. On a personal note - it was fun reading about Lily's adventures in Plant City, Florida - where I currently reside. Plant City, today, is a hugely agricultural setting, and the juxtaposition of Lily's world and this current world do not go unnoticed. It is easy to see that a conglomerate can easily gain a monopoly on the world of seeds and hybrid plants. Before he died in 1990, my father-in-law was a local farmer, and he complained heartily about having to purchase new seeds each year; try as he might many seeds he tried to nurture and save did not make it to the next planting season. It is all over the news, too, about Monsanto and their pesticide products; this fictional YA series is so timely and so frightening all at once.

Lily's adventures become more harrowing as she discovers that she is being followed. The characters in this book are "growing up" and their positions become more aligned with middle grade to young adult readers. The topic is so current and fresh, and interesting. Anyone who is interested in the environment and the future of our food supply will surely get an education and a what-if theory from reading these books. I am looking forward to finishing the series!