Seed Savers-Treasure

Mom’s Choice Gold Award Winner

Benjamin Franklin Award Winner

Two kids, two bikes, and an idea they can change their world.

It’s 2077. There’s no apocalypse, but some things are different. Things like the weather, the internet, and food. In twelve-year-old Clare’s world, blueberry is just a flavor and apples are found only in fairy tales.

Then one day Clare meets a woman who teaches her about seeds and real food. Ana tempts Clare with the notion that food exists other than the square, packaged food she has always known. With Ana’s guidance, Clare and her friends learn about seeds and gardening despite suspicions that such actions are illegal.

When the authorities discover the children’s forbidden tomato plant and arrest their mother, Clare and her brother flee. Clare has heard of a place called “The Garden State”, and with their bikes, a little money, and backpacks, the children begin a lonely cross-country journey.

Will they succeed in their quest to find a place of food freedom? And can they, only children, help change the world?

Schools, libraries, bookstores: All Seed Savers books available through Ingram, Permabound, & more. 

Or order directly from us. Contact Anastasia [at] FlyingBooksHouse.com with your order. Also available digitally and as an audiobook.

Reviews for Seed Savers-Treasure

“A fun-to-read series that teaches the importance of growing our own food. It leaves young readers excited to read the next one!” —Midwest Book Review

“A creative, engaging, well-written book series filled with action and a lot of truth as it touches the very real issue of preserving seeds from Greedy Corporate Seed Monopoly and understanding the importance of knowing how to grow our own healthy food. This book series is AWESOME!!!!!!!” —Rachel Parent, teen activist and founder of Kids Right to Know

“Fast moving and interesting, with a zippy and action-filled plot. There’s also a lot of good information presented in a clear and nonpreachy fashion. It’s a great way to open up discussions with your kids, and you’ll come away learning something, too.”—Willamette Woman Magazine

“…engagingly written to provoke thought among today’s youth while providing a backdrop of a very entertaining literary experience. This book is “right on” in presenting children with the wonders of agriculture and food production and how it should be a focus in understanding everyday living. Young readers can identify with the children in the story as they become empowered to effect change through what they have studied. There is much to like about this book, and I personally look forward to reading the next books of the series.” —Carol Leffler, UF/IFAS Master Gardener

“Sandra Smith’s Seed Saver books are great reads for young people on many levels. The action is packed with secret acts of civil disobedience, escape from evil GRIM thugs and independent cross-country treks. Plus, teens will both recognize and learn about issues surrounding food sources. Seed Saver books have something for everyone: diverse characters, themes of empowerment, revolution, and even a little romance.” —Joyce Yoder, former educator & administrator, Salem-Keizer School District

“With our food in jeopardy from those who see it only as a commodity, Seed Savers-Treasure takes the reader on a quest into the future to regain what we may lose in our lifetime – the right to grow our own food. Clare, Dante and Lily remind me of the precocious and activist-minded students I have taught. The fact that the protagonists are children making the difference is all the more commendable because it instills in kids the idea that they can. If you or your kids/students like fiction based on a possible future with kids as the heroes, this series is for them. Along the way, they’ll also learn a bit about gardening, the fragile security surrounding our food, and be entertained at the same time!”—Sally White, former science and gardening teacher, Green Apple Award Winner, Straub Environmental Learning Center All-Star Volunteer 

“I read Seed Savers aloud to my Community Garden class of 7th and 8th graders. Both my students and I enjoyed the plot and identified with the characters. The themes of the story dovetailed with current event issues we were learning about, making the story very relevant!”—Rachel Saltalmachia, Middle School Teacher

“Here’s a great piece of “juvenile” literature that doesn’t lose sight of one key fact: kids can think…The more you think about it, the more you see that this story, while maintaining a fast-paced surface, has lots and lots of layers. Smith suggests, very gently, important questions about the political and corporate interests that control America’s current food supply. So while Seed Savers stands tall as a great summer read, I can also imagine it as part of the curriculum for a Sunday school class, 4-H club, or other group that brings kids together to talk about things that matter. I wish this book would’ve been around when I was homeschooling–it would’ve been in our curriculum.”—William Jolliff, Professor of English, George Fox University

“Seed Savers was really good. . .This was a good reading level for me. The story was involved and it read well. The plot was pretty unique. I like how the setting seemed to be somewhat in the future. I also liked reading about the types of food they have (like “Sweeties”). I recommend this book to kids 9+.”—Erik Weibel, This Kid Reviews Books

“I haven’t been this in love with a young adult series since Harry Potter.  I haven’t been this in love with an individual young adult book since Lois Lowry’s The Giver.  221 pages of exciting young adult goodness!  I devoured it, and it was delicious. Book one of the series, Seed Savers-Treasure, is no misnomer. This book is truly a treasure. Author Sandra Smith has written the latest and greatest of young adult dystopian society novels. She has given us a solid middle-grade tale featuring a new (and somewhat real) futuristic threat – illegal gardening. Educators everywhere should be aware of this rising star in children’s literature.”—Andi Klemm, Anakalian Whims

“This is a great book series for middle age readers and garden lovers alike. There is diverse cast of children included, race, religion, socioeconomic backgrounds… and it’s just like that, the characters exist as themselves without beating you over the head with “look this character is Christian and this one is Jewish” and I think the soft subtle differences help encourage young minds (subliminally) to be accepting – because people are different. I will seek out the other books in this series and read ’em even if they aren’t here for review, that’s how much I like ’em. I’ll go out and buy them.”–NetGalley Reader/Reviewer

“…Appealing in all aspects for a child. As an adult reading it we might question the choices Clare, Dante, and Lily make, but a child will see the adventure and understand the children’s quest. A cautionary tale, too; this is the story of what could easily be on the road to happening here in America. I will be purchasing this for my school library.”—Kim Fields, Librarian