Garden My Hair

A Growing Mix

by Ami Polite

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Overview

An illustrated memoir by a garden and natural hair enthusiast.

Description

Garden My Hair is a memoir/manual/mixtape cultivated by gardener Ami Polite. The small sprout from the South Bronx of New York matured in the wide open Great Plains of Nebraska in the late 90s and early 2000s. Twenty years of pulling braids and weeds her fingers are strong enough to pen her personal thoughts and observations, that not only are relatable, humorous, passionate but doable. This mix will have you watering your hair, giving your garden a Hi-Five and doing the one-two step all at the same time.

About the author

Ami is a private gardener for the best and the brightest in
Nebraska, loving plants belonging to those who have busy lives. She is self taught from volunteering at Botanical and private gardens, as well as mentoring under a senior gardener until going off on her own journey.

On a professional and volunteer basis, she has been involved in horticulture for 15 years (May is her anniversary month). Gardening is her joy and therapy and she would love to continue writing amusing stories to help others share that joy also.

Paperback$35.00

Book Reviews

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Emille	Fantastic Multimedia Read Yes, I said multimedia. Imagine a read "mixtape"...that's what you're getting with this wonderfully open journal entry. GMH is more than a book, it is a conversation in a lounge with cool jazz playing, perhaps hookah lit, with you and Amy discussing a life philosophy developed through gardening, hair care and being alive in a world that doesn't always fit. Then imagine that same discussion moving seamlessly to your garden plot then to your houseplants, all the while the playlist morphs and adapts to the different environs while supporting the themes of your conversation. Garden My Hair is that robust conversation and it means to take you there. Very few reads I've had lately keep me so engrossed but also refreshed. It is about time someone shared their experience in such a uniquely gifted way. This is the kind of book more authors should write (from the well of their unique originality) and give us readers immersive experiences as they do. Read more
Rebecca	Stylish and informative This narrative charmingly captures the evolution of a gardener. As with all successful journeys, it is full of speculation, experimentation, and digression, and comes with a sound track. Before I read it, I had never considered how much gardening resembled hair care. You have to work with what you are given. You can improve, and you can injure, but it’s no use yearning for something you’re not going to achieve. Aesthetic pursuits can be, but needn’t be, time-consuming and expensive -- and it’s good to remember that the things we attend to ultimately will shape our self-perception and the people with whom we associate. Ami Polite’s early memories involved tending her father’s tower of plants in their Bronx apartment, walking through Crotona park with her mother on the way to school, making pilgrimages every other year to visit her grandma on the South Carolina coast, and on one of those trips evacuating an injured grasshopper from NYC by feeding it pothos leaves on the drive south. The seeds of her fascination with the natural world. Ami’s next adventures in growing environments involved her hair. After the traumas of pressing and relaxing, she and her mom committed to finding good resources and strategies that worked. As styles evolved, Ami tried cornrows, microbraids, clip-ons and wigs – not yet comfortable with “just my own hair.” And then the epiphany: “How silly it would be to invite people over to my garden only if my plants were in full bloom? I would rarely have guests.” Around the same time, now living in Omaha, Ami developed a more critical eye for landscape design, polishing her skills by volunteering at the botanical garden. She started a business. She found good mentors. She listened to what gardening was telling her: beauty is most admirable when it comes without exaggerated effort. When she took the plunge into gardening as a full-time career, Ami adopted a back-to-basics approach: soil, light, water, and hardiness zone largely determine the range of plant choices. Similarly, she made sure her hair had the right foundation for growth: a healthy body, and appropriate cleansers and moisturizers for her personal microenvironment. And she immersed herself in lifelong learning, gaining knowledge and wisdom from professionals, clients, classes, reading, and experimentation. Ami shares the fruits of her knowledge in chapters about the soil, light, water, the seasons, tools, weeds, pests, etiquette, and so much more. Each chapter has its own song track. Scattered throughout the pages are delightful illustrations and margin doodles by the talented Bri Davis, plus footnotes, definitions, and clever asides. At the end are references for gardening and for hair care – and even a QR code linked to the “mix tape” of the chapters. Now I don’t have to ask one of my kids to record the playlist for me. “Garden My Hair” is clever, colorful, conversational, enlightening, a pure joy. It would make a welcome gift for anyone who gardens – and especially for adolescents or young adults who are attracted to plants (indoors or outdoor), and who are just embarking on the journey of caring for themselves and the environment. I have read it several times, and with each reading something new pops up. I’m looking forward to Ami’s next book. Read more
Destiny	Complete Nostalgia This book captured all of my emotions! It has music from my past, talks about plants, and natural hair! All the while, teaching me. And the art work is the icing on the cake! Read more

Garden My Hair

A Growing Mix

by Ami Polite

View author's profile page

Book Reviews

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