Tuesday, November 17, 2009

THANKSGIVING: Book Lists, Book Reviews, Resources, & Crafts

Thanksgiving Book Lists


Reviews of Thanksgiving Books from Wild Rose Reader


Thanksgiving Resources for Teachers and Parents

One More Resource


Squanto’s Journey: The Story of the First Thanksgiving

Written by Joseph Bruchac

Illustrated by Greg Shed

Silver Whistle/Harcourt, 2000


This historical fiction picture book is excellent for reading aloud in the elementary grades. Bruchac narrates the story in the voice of Squanto (Tisquantum), a Patuxet Indian. The book opens with Squanto telling about his capture by Captain Thomas Hunt who took him and other Patuxets to Spain to be sold as slaves in 1614, how Spanish friars set Squanto free and helped him to get to England, and Squanto’s return to America in 1619 when he found that his people had been devastated by a disease. In the rest of the book, we learn about Squanto’s building a friendship with the Pokanokets and Nemaskets; Samoset, a Pemaquid Indian; the arrival of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower; and the relationship between Squanto and the English that helped the settlers at Plimoth make it through their first year in the New World. The book includes an author’s note and a glossary.


Milly and the Macy’s Parade
Written by
Shana Corey
Illustrated by
Brett Helquist
Scholastic, 2002


This is a tale about a young girl named Milly whose family has immigrated to the United States from Poland. Milly’s father works at Macy’s Department Store. He—along with other immigrants who work there—miss their families and the holiday celebrations they had back in their homelands. Milly listen to them talking and gets a grand idea.

Meanwhile, Mr. Macy is concerned because his salesclerks are frowning instead of acting festive before the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. He thinks the salesclerks are depressing the customers. He’s trying to figure out a solution to this problem. That’s when Milly approaches Mr. Macy and explains her idea. She tells him how she thinks “Macy’s could bring a little bit of everyone’s home to America.” Mr. Macy is receptive to Milly’s suggestion that the store sponsor a celebration that will remind the homesick employees of their holidays back home. The following day the store posts a sign advertising its Christmas parade. Word spreads quickly.

On Thanksgiving Day, Milly, her father, and all the other Macy’s workers dress up in costumes and march in the holiday parade. They all enjoy singing and strolling down the street—just as they had done in the old country.

This is a highly fictionalized account of the origin of the famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade--but it's an entertaining story. Shana Corey includes an Author’s Note with background information on the parade—including the fact that it missed only three holidays. It was canceled from 1942-1944 because of World War II.


Click here to view some of the interior illustrations from the book.
A Little Poetry for Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving
Traditional
The year has turned its circle,
The seasons come and go.
The harvest is all gathered in
And chilly north winds blow.

Orchards have shared their treasures,
The fields, their yellow grain.
So open wide the doorway-
Thanksgiving comes again!

Thanksgiving Magic
by Rowena Bastin Bennett

Thanksgiving Day I like to see
Our cook perform her witchery.
She turns a pumpkin into pie
As easily as you or I
Can wave a hand or wink an eye.
She takes leftover bread and muffin
And changes them to turkey stuffin’.


You can read the rest of the poem here.

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!!!

6 comments:

  1. You are the Queen of Book Lists! Thanks for the bountiful bonanza, Elaine. Milly and the Macy's Parade looks good.

    Happy Thanksgiving to you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jama--

    I had been working on this list of Thanksgiving books and resources for some time. I had hoped to post it sooner. I hope some folks find this helpful.

    ReplyDelete
  3. To be a good charitable being is to procure a make of openness to the world, an cleverness to trusteeship uncertain things beyond your own pilot, that can take you to be shattered in very exceptional circumstances as which you were not to blame. That says something very important about the condition of the ethical compulsion: that it is based on a trust in the up in the air and on a willingness to be exposed; it's based on being more like a weed than like a treasure, something rather feeble, but whose very special attraction is inseparable from that fragility.

    ReplyDelete
  4. To be a upright lenient being is to have a amiable of openness to the far-out, an gift to trusteeship uncertain things beyond your own pilot, that can lead you to be shattered in hugely extreme circumstances on which you were not to blame. That says something very important relating to the condition of the ethical compulsion: that it is based on a trustworthiness in the uncertain and on a willingness to be exposed; it's based on being more like a plant than like a sparkler, something kind of feeble, but whose acutely particular beauty is inseparable from that fragility.

    ReplyDelete
  5. To be a adroit benign being is to procure a make of openness to the far-out, an skill to trust undeterminable things beyond your own manage, that can front you to be shattered in uncommonly exceptionally circumstances for which you were not to blame. That says something uncommonly impressive with the fettle of the ethical life: that it is based on a trustworthiness in the fitful and on a willingness to be exposed; it's based on being more like a weed than like a jewel, something somewhat tenuous, but whose extremely special beauty is inseparable from that fragility.

    ReplyDelete
  6. To be a noble benign being is to from a philanthropic of openness to the world, an skill to trusteeship uncertain things beyond your own control, that can lead you to be shattered in very outermost circumstances pro which you were not to blame. That says something very impressive with the condition of the righteous passion: that it is based on a trustworthiness in the fitful and on a willingness to be exposed; it's based on being more like a spy than like a prize, something somewhat fragile, but whose very particular beauty is inseparable from that fragility.

    ReplyDelete