Submitted by Sue from Leonardtown!
Blueberries for Sal, written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey, tells the story of a little girl named Sal and a bear cub. One summer day Little Sal and her Mom decided to go to Blueberry Hill to pick blueberries. “We will take our berries home and can them,” said her mother. Little Sal had a small tin bucket just like her mother’s. When she dropped blueberries into the pail it made a kurplunk, kurplunk, kurplunk sound. Sal ate most of the berries she picked and some of her mother’s, until mom said to run along and pick her own berries. On the other side of the hill, Little Bear came with his mother to eat blueberries. Before long, Little Bear and Sal both got tired of trying to keep up with their mothers, and sat still eating berries in the middle of the patch. Then they started out to find their mothers. Unfortunately Little Sal and Little Bear got them mixed up with each other! This story with charming pictures will continue to enchant even after it’s been read. See this book listed in our catalog
Food
Ned’s New Home
Submitted by county youth coordinator Janis!
Ned’s New Home by Kevin Tseng. Ned is a worm that loves apples (because they are red) and apple pie. Ned lives in a red apple, and he is perfectly content until his apple starts to rot! He decides to look for a new home, but has many problems. The pear is too wobbly, the lemon too sour, and the blueberry is too small. A bird comes along and takes him, and his future cherry home up in the sky. He uses an umbrella to float down to a tree where he finds his perfect new home. It is an apple still on the tree! This book has many possibilities: It is perfect for talking to your child about the life cycle of an apple from seed to fruit. It also is a good introduction to different fruits and their taste, size, and color. See this book listed in our catalog
An Apple Pie for Dinner
Submitted by county youth coordinator Janis!
An Apple Pie for Dinner by Susan VanHecke. This is a cumulative story from an old English folktale, “The Apple Dumpling.” Granny Smith (notice the play on words) wants to bake an apple pie. There is only one problem–she does not have any apples! She takes the plums she has and trades them for feathers, and then flowers, etc. until she trades for a basket of apples. All of the people she meets along the way go back to her house and help her make the pie and then eat it. The baked clay and mixed media illustrations really add dimension to this wonderful book. There is an apple pie recipe included, as well as a website for fun activities to do with your child. See this book listed in our catalog
The Treasure Bath
Submitted by Melissa from Lexington Park!
The Treasure Bath, by Dan Andreasen, is an imaginative tale of a little boy who is disappointed about “bath time.” The book begins with a little boy helping his mother with baking. As you can imagine, little ones and baking can create one big mess. So, off to bath time he goes, glumly of course. Through vivid illustrations, and imagination, you will journey with the boy as he discovers a bath tub sea of interesting characters! They lead him to a map, and then a treasure chest. Inside the chest… well, you’ll just have to check out the book in order to know the rest! It’s a “giggly” twist, ending in sweet surprise! Picture books without any words have always been a personal favorite. These wordless tales encourage imaginative thinking, and allow your child to develop their own words to the story. This sort of imaginative story telling actually encourages the development of narrative skills and sequential learning. See this book listed in our catalog
Applesauce Season
Submitted by county youth coordinator Janis!
Applesauce Season by Eden Lipson. Applesauce season begins when school starts. This is a perfect read-aloud book with great cadence. A little boy tells the story, and he talks about different varieties of apples and how each makes a unique kind of applesauce. In the city, where this little boy lives, there are no apple trees, but the family goes to the farmers’ market to get the apples to make applesauce. The little boy tells how they choose the apples, chop them up, and then cook, grind and finally taste the applesauce. With the descriptive language you can almost smell the apples cooking. At the end of the story there is a recipe for making applesauce. What a wonderful way to help your child be ready to learn to read by making applesauce and talking through the steps involved! See this book listed in our catalog
Lousy Rotten Stinkin’ Grapes
Submitted by Sue from Leonardtown!
Lousy Rotten Stinkin Grapes by Margie Palatini and illustrated by Barry Moser. Fox makes a plan. After all, he believes himself to be sly. Clever. Smart. Fox eyes a bunch of tantalizing grapes hanging high in a tree and decides those juicy morsels should be for him! So he sets out to find a way to get to them using his sly, clever, and smart ideas to come up with a plan. After all he is a fox. With his clever plans, and the help from Bear, and Beaver, and Porcupine, and Possum, Fox comes up with complicated plans for getting the grapes. Will Fox get those juicy grapes, or will his plans fall apart and leave him frustrated? Read this twist to the Aesop’s fable “The Fox and the Grapes.” The bright and colorful water color illustrations help to create a silly twist to a popular story.