MommaReads

Gilbert’s morning starts off with him waking up late, going to school with toothpaste all over his shirt, missing breakfast and getting to school late so that there is only one person left to be his partner on their field trip…Philip…Philip the tattle tale. Gilbert tries to lose Philip on their field trip and winds up getting himself locked in the bathroom. Guess who comes to his rescue? That’s right, Philip. It turns out that Gilbert ends up being thankful for Philip on his Thanksgiving-themed field trip and Gilbert also finds out that Philip can be a pretty good friend.

Mr. and Mrs. Moose are busy getting ready to host Thanksgiving dinner, but they don’t have a turkey, so Mr. Moose sets out to find one. As he sets out, Rabbit joins him and then the Goats and then Porcupine. They do finally find Turkey who is hiding out until after Thanksgiving and they do end up with Turkey at their Thanksgiving table, but not ON their table…much to Turkey’s surprise and relief.

Ann and Ed end up going out to eat at the new restaurant down the street when their Thanksgiving turkey gets ruined. What they don’t realize though is that the restaurant isn’t open (but someone left the door unlocked) and that the family inside is actually having their first Thanksgiving in America. The family decides to take in Ann and Ed and they are quickly swept up in the family’s celebrations. Ann and Ed return home and decide they are most thankful that Ann ruined the turkey.

Mrs. Grumm finds a turkey egg in the woods. She takes care of it in anticipation of the turkey inside someday being part of a great turkey dinner. The egg does hatch and she feeds the bird all year around with seeds, fruits and veggies from her farm. Thanksgiving time comes and she begins her preparations for Thanksgiving which means sharpening and polishing the hatchet. Turns out that sometimes you end up eating Thanksgiving dinner with the turkey instead of having turkey for Thanksgiving dinner.

Turk is his parents’ pride and joy…he is the stongest, fastest, plumpest turkey on the farm. His little brother, Runt, is not. What Runt lacks in bulk, however, he makes up for in brains. As potential turkey eaters come to the farm to pick out their Thanksgiving bird, it is Runt’s quick wit that saves his dim-witted brother time and time again. This is a very cute story and I think my favorite part is at the end when they realize that Runt is right and they start to work together to discourage possible turkey eaters.

This book reminds me so much of my own Thanksgivings growing up…the food, the family, the games with cousins after all the eating and the togetherness. I also love the compassion and patience this book teaches all of us when one of the youngest family members gets in the way and the turkey ends up in the fish tank. Cute story…and it rhymes!

This Thanksgiving story will give most little ones the giggles…so much goes wrong while trying to get their Thanksgiving dinner together…the turkey ends up in the lake for starters. The Tappletons’ turkey dinner does not turn out AT ALL as they had hoped, but they quickly learn that it’s not the turkey that makes Thanksgiving, but the people you share it with.

Note: There are two different versions of this book. Only the illustrations are different; the story is the same.

A cute book about fall and the many stages a tree goes through throughout the year. This book is geared towards preschoolers, but it is also great for early readers because it has repetition and illustrations that really support a beginning reader. It’s also short enough and the illustrations are bright and entertaining enough that a toddler would enjoy it as well.

Peter lives on Pumpkin Hollow Farm with his Mimi and Papa. They grow several crops throughout the year, but Peter’s favorites are the pumpkins. One year, Peter ends up tending to a very special pumpkin. He nurtures it and watches it grow and grow. When the farm opens up to the public, that special pumpkin’s vine is so far away from the others that no one picks it. That is until a very special someone comes looking for a very special pumpkin and Peter knows exactly what to do with his pumpkin. Very cute story of giving and friendship and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the illustrations.

Duck and Goose decide they want a pumpkin after they see that a friend has one. They look in a log, in a leaf pile, up in a tree, in a pond and on top of a stump and they still can’t find one. That’s when their friend suggests they look in the pumpkin patch. A very cute first book about Halloween or fall.