Anna L. (annalovesbooks) reviewed on
ISBN 0399223274 - Thanksgiving qualifies as the most awkward of holidays for non-religious Americans AND those who seek political correct-ness, so to see how it's addressed in books for children is always interesting. That curiosity, and the attraction of Tomie dePaola as author/illustrator, made choosing this book a no-brainer - and what a good choice it was!
The first couple pages are given to the history of Thanksgiving: the pilgrims, thankful to be together in their new home, thank God with a feast that they share with their new friends. The remainder of the book covers Thanksgiving today, from the infamous traced-hand turkeys to mince pie.
It is almost impossible to imagine that any book about Thanksgiving can fairly leave out the god that everyone is thanking. In dePaola's book, that's definitely god-capital-G, mentioned only one time, but those who don't believe in that god may want to skip this book. For the politically correct adult crowd, there's an awkward moment: The pilgrims' friends come with food for the feast. They are not identified as Indians, the correct term for the time, but not PC. They are not identified as Native Americans, the PC term that the pilgrims wouldn't recognize. They are simply called friends, but clearly illustrated as Indians. It's a weird-feeling attempt to dance around the issue and, while adults can't help but notice it, kids are not likely to care.
The illustrations are, as in most board books, at least half of the story. These are excellent. The ones of the pilgrims' time are simple and without a lot of background detail, while the present-day images are much busier. That's a nice, realistic touch, but there is one oddity: the pilgrims and their friends are all adults, there's not a kid in sight! This one is a very basic, easy to understand, introduction to the holiday and well worth sharing with your child.
- AnnaLovesBooks
The first couple pages are given to the history of Thanksgiving: the pilgrims, thankful to be together in their new home, thank God with a feast that they share with their new friends. The remainder of the book covers Thanksgiving today, from the infamous traced-hand turkeys to mince pie.
It is almost impossible to imagine that any book about Thanksgiving can fairly leave out the god that everyone is thanking. In dePaola's book, that's definitely god-capital-G, mentioned only one time, but those who don't believe in that god may want to skip this book. For the politically correct adult crowd, there's an awkward moment: The pilgrims' friends come with food for the feast. They are not identified as Indians, the correct term for the time, but not PC. They are not identified as Native Americans, the PC term that the pilgrims wouldn't recognize. They are simply called friends, but clearly illustrated as Indians. It's a weird-feeling attempt to dance around the issue and, while adults can't help but notice it, kids are not likely to care.
The illustrations are, as in most board books, at least half of the story. These are excellent. The ones of the pilgrims' time are simple and without a lot of background detail, while the present-day images are much busier. That's a nice, realistic touch, but there is one oddity: the pilgrims and their friends are all adults, there's not a kid in sight! This one is a very basic, easy to understand, introduction to the holiday and well worth sharing with your child.
- AnnaLovesBooks
