Tommy Tomato and the First Color
A Garden Story About Friendship, Flattery, and Growing UpBy W. HigginsRecorded TrackLength2h 59m
About this audiobook
Tommy Tomato has waited all summer for his first touch of red.
When it finally arrives, nobody seems to notice. Not the ladybug. Not the gardener. Not the way Tommy hoped.
Then a voice from behind the old flowerpots sends him a message. It says Tommy is special. It says he could be a headliner. It says he could shine forever, if only he will try a little Glossy Green.
His best friend Connie Cabbage doesn't trust it. Old Gus has seen too many storms to believe in shortcuts. But Tommy wants to be seen, and the voice knows exactly what to say.
A warm, funny, and quietly brave story about friendship, growing up, and learning that the ones who notice you first are often the ones growing right beside you.
For ages 7 to 10. Ideal for independent readers, bedtime read-alouds, and book groups.
Audiobook details
GenreChildren's Literature
Length2 hrs 59 mins
Narrated byRecorded Track
FormatAudiobook
Publish dateOct 6, 2026
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Front Matter
2Introduction: Welcome to the Garden
3Part One: The False Shine. Chapter 1: First Color
4Chapter 2: The Salad Bed
5Chapter 3: The Message from the Shed
Show all chaptersShow less
6Chapter 4: Gus’s Storm
7Chapter 5: The Offer
8Chapter 6: Mud and Shine
9Chapter 7: The Evergreen Showpiece
10Part Two: The Lowest Light. Chapter 8: The Drought
11Chapter 9: The Broken Route
12Chapter 10: The Shattered Shell
13Chapter 11: Shade and Water
14Chapter 12: The Night Vigil
15Chapter 13: Into the Glass
16Chapter 14: Gus Under Glass
17Part Three: The Living Knot. Chapter 15: Return to the Row
18Chapter 16: The Living Knot
19Chapter 17: Behind the Pots
20Chapter 18: The Last Harvest
21Back Matter: The Real Garden Behind the Fable
22What is real
23Tommy’s roots
24How tomatoes ripen
25Why tomatoes split
26Gus’s almost-woody stem
27Algernon’s climbing habit
28Minty’s border disputes
29Lenny’s banked earth
30The greenhouse light
31Tall flowers in the wind
32Ladybugs and aphids
33Gray mold
34What the story changes
35Moving mature tomato plants
36Gus’s long life
37Tommy’s rapid recovery
38The living knot
39Saving tomato seeds
40What “heirloom” means
41Garden folklore
42Eggshells and slugs
43Basil beside tomatoes
44Back Matter: Garden Words
45Back Matter: Grow Your Own Tomato
46Saving seeds
47Sowing and growing
48Watching for first color
49Back Matter: Who’s Who in the Garden
50Tomato Row
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