Fiction - Food, Fiction - Holidays & Festivals, Fiction - Nature, Fiction - General & Miscellaneous

Apples and Pumpkins

Name: Apples and Pumpkins
Author: Anne Rockwell
ISBN: 9781442476561

by Anne Rockwell, Lizzy Rockwell (Illustrator)

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Overview

A young girl spends a glorious fall day picking apples and searching for the perfect pumpkin in this refreshed classic.

"When red and yellow leaves are on the trees," a little girl goes with her parents to a farm where they pick apples and choose "the best pumpkin of them all." Back home, she helps to carve a grinning jack-o'-lantern face on the big orange pumpkin, which guards their doorstep on halloween night while her mother hands out shiny red apples and she and her father go trick-or-treating with the neighborhood ghosts and goblins.

Bold, autumn-colored paintings and a simple but lively story capture a little girl's joy and satisfaction as she shares in the excitement of the fall season.

In preparation for Halloween night, a family visits Mr. Comstock's farm to pick apples and pumpkins.

About the Author, Anne Rockwell

Anne Rockwell has written numerous books for children, including At the Beach and The First Snowfall, both illustrated by Harlow Rockwell. She lives in Old Greenwich, Connecticut.

Lizzy Rockwell, Anne’s daughter, has illustrated several books written by her mother as well as many of her own titles. She lives with her family in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

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Editorials

From the Publisher

"The combination of words and pictures is just right."

— Horn Book

Children's Literature - Emily Griffin

A little girl visits a local farm with her mother and father. When the leaves on the trees turn red, yellow, and orange it means it is time for picking apples and pumpkins. Written by Anne Rockwell and illustrated by her daughter Lizzy, this picture book (first published in 1989) is modest and straightforward. The rosy-cheeked family drives to the farm where they are greeted by the owner, Mr. Comstock, who immediately gives them a basket perfect for apple picking. Geese, chickens, and a turkey follow the family as they walk to the orchard. The little girl climbs a small tree to grab the reddest apples. After their basket is full they head over to the pumpkin field, where Dad cuts the best one from the vine. These fall traditions are followed by Halloween activities. A full-page spread illustrates a partially carved jack-o'-lantern as well as the finished product, glowing in the dark. Finally, it is time to go trick-or-treating. Mom hands out apples, not candy, to costumed children, while Dad and daughter go trick-or-treating up the street. Wearing a black robe, pointy hat, and green mask with a long warty nose, the little girl is dressed as a witch, of course! A good-natured story, that shows a family outside doing fun fall and Halloween activities. The simple text is easy for young listeners to follow and could be useful in a primary classroom to teach sequential events and descriptive writing. Reviewer: Emily Griffin

School Library Journal

PreS—This mother-daughter team's classic title (1989) has new cover art that punches up the fall colors, adds a chicken, and features apples and pumpkins in the foreground. The text's typeface has changed, but everything else is kept in its original perfection so that yet another generation of youngsters will celebrate autumn, from orchard visits to trick-or-treating.—Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA