The New Jersey Children’s Writer’s Guild

Join member Sandra Koehler Lee as she explores some terrific seasonal book offerings for Thanksgiving.

Whether you want to teach your child the history of Thanksgiving or share a tale from the turkey’s perspective, there are some good books for this holiday.

Thank You, Thanksgiving by David Milgrim and Thanksgiving is for Giving Thanks by Margaret Sutherland are both great books to introduce your young child to this fall holiday. What’s also great about them is they help teach children about being thankful in general, not just on Thanksgiving, without being preachy. For example, the little girl in Thank You, Thanksgiving says “Thank you, warm boots” as she’s walking through the snow.

For those looking for a little humor for their holiday and want to feel better about their family-gathering snafus, there are two books kids of all ages would enjoy. Turkey Pox by Laurie Halse Anderson tells the story of Charity, who is looking forward to visiting Grandma and enjoying all the trappings of the holiday to discover she has the chicken pox, or in this case, turkey pox. This is the Turkey by Abby Levine describes the typical Thanksgiving fare, such as stuffing, yams and, of course, turkey. As with many family events, things don’t always go as planned, but as this rhyming tale illustrates there’s still a happy ending.

Photo © Sandra K. Lee

If you like rooting for the underdog, then definitely read A Plump and Perky Turkey by Teresa Bateman. This rhyming narrative depicts a town trying to trick a clever turkey into becoming the main course.

If you would like to share more of Thanksgiving’s historical significance with your school-age child, there are two books to round out your festive reading session. The Thanksgiving Story by Alice Dalgliesh follows the Hopkins family on their journey to America and their first Thanksgiving with the Native Americans. If You Were at the First Thanksgiving by Anne Kamma also relates this special holiday’s origins. Kamma’s format includes chapters titled in various questions such as “Were Pilgrim parents strict?” so you can skip around if you choose, which would still make this readable for younger children. I think adults would probably learn some things, too. Parents should know that both books include the details of the holiday, such as how many people died from the trip, so they should use their discretion based on their comfort level and their child’s age.

So when you’re done stuffing yourself and before everyone sinks into a post-feast coma, snuggle up with your kid and read one of these books.

~ Sandra Koehler Lee

Sandra is a former newspaper reporter and current freelance writer living in Central New Jersey. She also runs ParenthoodNJ (parenthoodnj.com), an online resource for NJ parents, and reads to her preschooler every night.

You can view Sandra’s full list of great fall holiday books at her web site.