Thanksgiving books are unusually tragic, and really unsuitable as a whole for storytimes for younger kids. This lack really makes it hard to find a trio that doesn't have something smarmy or treacly, just because that's leagues better than the alternatives. I wasn't unhappy with my choices here, but I do wish I had more quality to select from.
I Go With My Family to Grandma's
Riki Levinson, illustrated by Diane Goode
ISBN: 9780525442615
Several branches of a big-city family converges on the grandparent's place for a family photo.
An old but sweet book from Levinson, with exceptional old-timey documentary-style artwork by Goode. A cumulative/repetitive book: each branch of the family has a different color, travels via a different type of conveyance, and comes from a different borough of New York to Grandma Central, where they all meet and mingle before everyone's together for a great big family portrait. The familiar family get-together balances the utterly unfamiliar cityscapes and transit modes to make it just the right amount of different but understandable.
Thanksgiving Cats
Jean Marzollo, illustrated by Hans Wilhelm
ISBN: 9780606172820
Adorable cats in mid-1990s style "scholastic book art" run through a cutesy rhyme.
Ok, I know this is trite and cutesy, but it was either these cats or one of the dozens of insufferable "Thanks for Thanksgiving" style books where the whole thing is simply a very slightly disguised (or not at all disguised) prayer of thanks. No thank you. Cats it is then. There are Thanksgiving Cats and Thanksgiving Kittens, and the Cats do farming and kitchen work (there are visually-gendered cats doing both farming and kitchen tasks, which I heartily approve) and the Kittens play, perform a simple task, or simply get in the way. The only weird thing is "apple pie with cheese" which I can't figure out if it's merely inserted to scan the necessary rhyme, or if that's actually a thing.
Duck for Turkey Day
Jacqueline Jules, illustrated by Kathryn Mitter
ISBN: 9780807517345
Tuyet is disturbed by her family's chosen "Turkey Day" tradition when it doesn't match up.
A lovely book covering cultural differences, adapting traditions to fit your own family needs, and the really intense and often overlooked desires of all children to simply fit in and be "just like teacher" or "just like everyone else." Tuyet's family maybe could be a bit more understanding and explain things, instead of letting her teacher do all the heavy lifting, but it is what it is. The schoolroom is purposefully diverse, but it gets the point across neatly.
No comments:
Post a Comment