At the height of the U.S. Depression, Lydia Grace Finch must leave home to spend a year living with her stodgy uncle in the city to help out in his bakery. The story of how she transforms his tenement apartment (and eventually her uncle) with her gardening skills is told through a series of letters she writes from August 27, 1935 to July 11, 1936, and through David Small's detailed pen-and-ink illustrations, as well. Small's line work, in particular, shows the determination of the plucky young heroine, contrasted with the gruff character of her hard-working uncle. (Ages 5-9)