Where the Watermelons Grow

by Cindy Baldwin

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137	8	200,730	(3.95)	None
Juvenile Fiction. Juvenile Literature. Fans of The Thing About Jellyfish and A Snicker of Magic will be swept away by Cindy Baldwin's debut middle grade about a girl coming to terms with her mother's mental illness. When twelve-year-old Della Kelly finds her mother furiously digging black seeds from a watermelon in the middle of the night and talking to people who aren't there, Della worries that it's happening again-that the sickness that put her mama in the hospital four years ago is back. That her mama is going to be hospitalized for months like she was last time. With her daddy struggling to save the farm and her mama in denial about what's happening, it's up to Della to heal her mama for good. And she knows just how she'll do it: with a jar of the Bee Lady's magic honey, which has mended the wounds and woes of Maryville, North Carolina, for generations. But when the Bee Lady says that the solution might have less to do with fixing Mama's brain and more to do with healing her own heart, Della must learn that love means accepting her mama just as she is.… (more)

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Showing 1-5 of 8 (next | show all)

Like Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe, this book deals with mental illness and I liked it better because it seemed more realistic. Young Della Kelly's mother is schizophrenic, which illness became manifest with Della's birth. Although she was hospitalized and given medication when Della was 8, the birth of her little sister causes her to progressively worsen. Della feels responsible, and tries to help her Mama using the logic of a child, but her various strategies don't work. Eventually, the Bee Lady and other neighbors help Della figure out the help that is needed most. (

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skipstern | Jul 11, 2021 |

children's middlegrade fiction (12 y.o. coming to accept mom's schizophrenia in rural NC). (

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reader1009 | Jul 3, 2021 |

This book is as Southern as sweet tea and that trademark honesty that I imagine all southerners have. I wish I had read a book like this as a kid. In the 70's and 80's all of tv and books contained "normal" families (except for After School Specials) and all kids can benefit from knowing that all families have challenges and that reaching out to friends and family will help.

I think the more significant message is that sometimes changing your own heart is the only thing you can do when faced with a loved one with any sickness (mental or physical)

I would hand this book off to any child ages 8 and up- and I would steer kids who have challenges at home to it. I'm looking forward to future books written by Cindy Baldwin.

Please note that I received a free copy of this book from Harper Collins without a review requirement or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that, I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.

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JennyNau10 | Dec 7, 2019 |

I'm adding this to another one of my favourite reads. A touching story about how not a family but a whole community supports each other when one has schizophrenia. (

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YukiNatsuo | Oct 27, 2019 |

Della is a young girl on the brink of her teenage years and has to grow up pretty fast, with her mother's illness and her father's failing business. The drought caused hardships for the family, but nothing is harder than her mother's schizophrenia, which Della constantly blames herself for. Throughout the book she realizes that some things out of her control and learns to cope with the circumstances, all while realizing who she can be and growing into herself. This book deals with a lot of family issues and self identity that can resonate with many students. (

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Bxc037 | Mar 2, 2019 |

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North Carolina, USA

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Cooper, Alexandra

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Juvenile Fiction. Juvenile Literature. Fans of The Thing About Jellyfish and A Snicker of Magic will be swept away by Cindy Baldwin's debut middle grade about a girl coming to terms with her mother's mental illness. When twelve-year-old Della Kelly finds her mother furiously digging black seeds from a watermelon in the middle of the night and talking to people who aren't there, Della worries that it's happening again-that the sickness that put her mama in the hospital four years ago is back. That her mama is going to be hospitalized for months like she was last time. With her daddy struggling to save the farm and her mama in denial about what's happening, it's up to Della to heal her mama for good. And she knows just how she'll do it: with a jar of the Bee Lady's magic honey, which has mended the wounds and woes of Maryville, North Carolina, for generations. But when the Bee Lady says that the solution might have less to do with fixing Mama's brain and more to do with healing her own heart, Della must learn that love means accepting her mama just as she is.

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