Can we read? Special edition: Thanksgiving 🦃
*With some notes about Christmas
Good morning, good people. I definitely should have planned to take this week off from this newsletter — I do not feel like sending a Thanksgiving issue at this moment in time (not because I’m not thankful) — but I didn’t, and I can’t just skip it because that’s not who I am, so here we are. I am trying to invite myself to allow all the things I’m feeling (I don’t know how this is going, honestly). The best thing I’ve read this morning is Courtney Martin’s “A prayer to get through this day.” I needed words like these, and I pray this for all of us. And, I want to say thank you for being here with me, and for being in the world. You matter. It matters that we are together.
Some notes before we proceed:
In order to respect your precious time and attention during the busiest months of the year and preserve my own sanity, I’ve decided to approach the upcoming (oncoming? 🚖 ) holidays a bit differently. Especially as it pertains to Christmas, I’ll be sending multi-part missives and focusing more on volume of titles — so I can share as many with you as possible, while still being true to my promise of having had personal experience with each book — and less on reviews (or on shorter reviews, at the very least).
Additionally, and far more importantly: I want to be totally transparent here and say that I am not as comfortable as I want to be in my knowledge of non-Christmas children’s books. I don’t consider myself a Christian but still, I was born into and grew up in our predominantly Judeo-Christian culture and despite never receiving any religious education of any kind, I know the story of Christmas from the Christian point of view. The basic fact is that I don’t know enough about Hanukkah books; I don’t know enough about Kwanzaa books (side note: I realize that Kwanzaa is a cultural rather than religious holiday and there are plenty of people who celebrate Christmas and Kwanzaa.)
I think it’s vitally important to cultural literacy — not to mention the building of a peaceful, respectful, and inclusive world — to know basic information about the belief systems inherent to world religions (hence the reason we do read the story of Christmas from a Christian perspective, and I will mention some of those books in a clearly delineated list), and while my own education isn’t lacking in this area, my knowledge of children’s literature on the topic definitely is.
Do I read my kids books about Hanukkah and Kwanzaa? Absolutely. But I don’t have a great variety of titles, and these holidays are not my strong suit. I was going to do a ton of research (I have a knee-high stack of library books at my feet as I sit here typing) — I even enlisted the help of my best friend, who is both Jewish and a kindergarten teacher — until I realized that what’s most important to me not just in this newsletter but as a writer is being real. So I’m not going to pretend I know about any other December holiday books than Christmas ones. If any of you can help me get a more confident grasp on Hanukkah or Kwanzaa books, please do — reply here and I will gratefully share your recommendations.
(Thanks for bearing with me in this torrential stream of thoughts today — and always, really.)
Okay, let’s go over the river and through the woods on this Thanksgiving issue. Ready?
Sharing the Bread: An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving Story by Pat Zietlow Miller, illustrated by Jill McElmurry (2015)
This is my favorite Thanksgiving book of all time, bar none: the contest isn’t even close. From the moment I first discovered it (from the library, of course) several years ago, I knew I needed to look no further for a Thanksgiving title that would satisfy me more than this one does. Like most, if not really all, Thanksgiving stories, this is one about preparing a feast — a family comes together to cook and eat and remember what they’re grateful for — but what sets this one apart is two-fold: the simple yet profound rhythmic text that sounds like putting one foot in front of the other (it’s absolutely poetry), and the unpretentious yet savory illustrations (they have a lovely homespun feel). Combined, those two forces come together to present a gratifying meal of a book (what, you thought I’d do a Thanksgiving issue without a food analogy?) that I believe holds appeal for all ages, from toddlers to teens and beyond. It’s a pleasure to read, to remind my children and myself of all the blessings of our life: our family, our health, our home, and indeed, sharing the bread.
Thanks for Thanksgiving by Julie Marks, illustrated by Doris Barrette (2004)
If I get a runner-up favorite, it’s this title. “Thanks for Thanksgiving, for turkey and pie. Thank you for fall and gold leaves floating by. Thank you for school — I love to feel smart! Thank you for music and dancing and art.” The narrative here is straightforward — I’d even go so far as to say plain, as each page is no more complicated than simply noticing what’s happening in the moment, and saying thank you — but that only serves to lend it an almost incantatory spirit. This is a prayer, essentially, and an essential one. That is also happens to be enjoyable to look at, that the family depicted is one of action and fun and lots of love — that’s just a bonus, and a delicious one.
Thanksgiving Treat by Catherine Stock (1990)
Perhaps it’s because I have sensitive children, and definitely ones that are easily hurt by feeling “too little” to do something, but I am always alert to books that address these tender and, I think, pretty universal feelings. This title is all about that experience exactly, only as it pertains to Thanksgiving. A small child — the youngest, the littlest in the family (ambiguously gendered and never openly named, which always wins points with me) — wants to be included in all the hustle and bustle happening on the big day, but everyone tells them they’re too busy, or to be careful, or that they’ve got it covered. In a full house, there’s nowhere for this little one to be or be useful (I do find myself wondering why no one can come up with a helper job), so they seek refuge outside, alone. Eventually Grandpa comes out and asks for assistance with a little adventure — knocking chestnuts from a tree — and finally, this eager kid has a task just perfect for them, and one that contributes in a real and welcome way to Thanksgiving Day. The illustrations here are warm and inviting and depict an affable family atmosphere, and Stock does an especially good job showing the child’s emotions via their facial expressions. Anyone who has ever been left out when they wanted to be welcome in will relate to this story, and enjoy its loving outcome.
A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting, illustrated by Diane de Groat (1991)
In this charming and humorously illustrated tale, it’s Thanksgiving morning and Mr. and Mrs. Moose are busy preparing for the feast they’re hosting later for all their friends, when Mrs. Moose reveals that what she really wants to offer their guests is a turkey. Mr. Moose, devoted husband that he is, vows to find her one. He’s quickly joined in his quest by Rabbit, the Goats (whose house in the middle of a garbage heap, fenced by old tires, is just perfect), Sheep, and Porcupine, and they find Turkey easily. Because Turkey isn’t dumb (unlike IRL), he runs, but the friends catch him — and just when you think, uhhh, how gory is this children’s book going to get? Bunting introduces a plot twist that pleases kids, marching Turkey back to the Moose residence not to eat him but to invite him to the table and eat with him. Is it a little saccharine? I don’t think so. But then again, I believe in the ideas (and frequent messages) of mercy, kindness, and friendship, which are here in abundance — and rather than being overly sentimental, this books is just compassionate, and sweet.
Over the River & Thro’ the Woods, illustrated by Normand Chartier (1987)
There are, of course, many versions of this poem by Lydia Maria Child, which was originally published in 1884 in a book called Flowers for Children, Volume 2 (thank you, Wikipedia). Though the other version I like a lot is beautifully illustrated by Christopher Manson, I find the pacing of the words-per-page in that one difficult to sing along with — if you are a regular reader of this newsletter you already know: of course I sing this book — and truth be told, the adorable illustrations of the bunny family in this one please me to no end (I am a total sucker for any kind of adorable illustrated bunny). There are, it should also be mentioned, modernized versions of this poem, some of which even look entertaining (Over the River and Through the Wood: A Holiday Adventure by Linda Ashman), but since I am more of a purist than not (and certainly a purist when it comes to poetry, which probably surprises no one), I stick to the original poem, preserved here in most of its entirety — I’ve yet to find a title that does all the verses — just pleasant and pure, like many things loved and known.
Have I mentioned its adorable illustrated bunnies?
Also highly recommended (but see aforementioned note on preserving my sanity):
Thanksgiving Day at Our House: Thanksgiving Poems for the Very Young, Nancy White Carlstrom (mentions God, but God only in the sense of a higher power-ness, not necessarily a Christian worldview — can be easily adapted to use whatever descriptor fits your beliefs)
Gracias the Thanksgiving Turkey, Joy Cowley (mentions God; mentions and shows images of Catholic mass)
The Very First Thanksgiving Day, Rhonda Gowler Greene
Turkey Pox, Laurie Halse Anderson
Other titles:
Arthur’s Thanksgiving, Marc Brown
How Many Days to America?, Eve Bunting (This is literally and figuratively beautiful)
Biscuit is Thankful, Alyssa Satin Capucilli (I am personally thankful that the appeal of Biscuit books has almost entirely disappeared in my home 😜 )
Cranberry Thanksgiving, Wende and Harry Devlin
Thanksgiving Is Here!, Diane Goode
Oh, What a Thanksgiving!, Steven Kroll
‘Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving, Dav Pilkey
The Know-Nothings Talk Turkey, Michele Sobel Spirn (early reader)
Books that sort of fit into “fall” but which I think of more as “pre-winter:”
These books are late fall, pre-winter titles. When you live in a place where it snows before — sometimes well before — winter officially arrives and almost always before the holidays on which you actually expect snow (raise your hand if you mostly trick-or-treated as a child with your costume over your snowsuit 🖐 ), it’s too late to bring them out in January, but they don’t belong in earlier fall either, so they are homeless, in a way. I always pull them out with the Thanksgiving books — and some of them absolutely have themes of thankfulness — though none of them are about, or mention, Thanksgiving.
La Castañera: The Chestnut Vendor, Darice Bailer (this is a bilingual book published by Scholastic — may be a bit difficult to purchase but has truly lovely themes of generosity on multiple levels and is worth tracking down in your library system or on the used market)
The Scarecrow, Beth Ferry (this title ends in springtime but helps make sense of the idea of scarecrows, which are of course a fall/early winter thing)
Time to Sleep, Denise Fleming (I love, love, love this book)
I’m Thankful Each Day, P.K. Hallinan
I Know and Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie, Alison Jackson
The Most Thankful Thing, Lisa McCourt (one of the sweetest parent-child books I’ve ever read, and I’ve read a lot of them)
Winter Lullaby, Barbara Seuling
That’s it. Thanks for reading, thanks for sharing this with friends (well-read frenemies?) and others. If you’d like to read the archives, you can find them here.
Peace to you today.