Maw Books Blog

Thanksgiving is quickly coming upon us and with so many Halloween and Christmas books on the market, Thanksgiving gets lost somewhere in the middle.  So it’s great to see a book like This is the Feast by Diane Z. Shore available to pick up the slack.

This is the Feast begins as the Mayflower sets sail in 1620 in hopes of reaching a new land to escape religious persecution.  The pilgrims (who I’m glad to see are not depicted in all black and white) reach land and with much trial and tribulation try to survive the first winter at Plymouth, despite much death and disease among them.  Without the help of the Indians to show them how to sow the corn they may not have survived.  The book culminates with a great feast with the Indians to celebrate their good fortune.

This is the Feast is a lyrical, rhythmic verse.  I read it out loud to my three year old and it flowed well.  Each sentence begins as “These are the . . . ” and “This is the . . .”  For example:

These are the maples, in forests ablaze,
where wild turkeys run and golden deer graze.
These are the plums and cranberries tart,
picked and preserved with a gladdening heart.

These are the cornstalks, soldiers of maize,
gathered in sheaves during harvesting days.

These are the baskets of plentiful crops,
spilling with tassels and vegetable tops
and brimming with berries and chestnuts and plums
that ripened in forests where golden deer run -
a harvest of plenty, all gathered with pride.
“Thanks be to God, who doth us provide!”

Megan Lloyd’s illustrations are bright, detailed, and lively but to tell you the truth nothing that I was “oohing and awing” over.  They were very clear and accurate but the rendering perhaps leaves something to be desired.  That said my little boy enjoyed picking out all the animals on the different pages.  He eagerly was turning the pages before I could finish reading the text.  Even if he didn’t understand anything that I was actually saying, hearing the rhymes was good and it stills worked great as a point and see type book.

This is the Feast is a great introduction to the Thanksgiving traditions that many of us carry on in our own homes.  Because I love to eat, and I love Thanksgiving, tomorrow we’ll talk about some of those traditions and share some yummy Thanksgiving recipes.  So come prepared to share!

Visit Diane Z. Shore at her website and these other participating blogs today in the Kidz Book Buzz tour: the 160acrewoods, A Mom Speaks, All About Children’s Books, Becky’s Book Reviews, Cafe of Dreams, Dolce Bellezza, Homeschool Buzz, KidzBookBuzz.com, Looking Glass Reviews, Maggie Reads, Maw Books Blog, Never Jam Today, Our Big Earth, Quiverfull Family, Reading is My Superpower, and SmallWorld Reads.