Pumpkins

Children's Literature

Jacqueline Farmer pays tribute to fall's favorite fruit in Pumpkins. Like seeds in the familiar, fat Halloween staple, this book is stuffed with fun facts. Kids learn how to carve their own jack-o-lanterns and that this spooky symbol came out of an Irish folktale about a foolish man and his candle-lit turnip. They can follow a seed from planting to growing to deliciously filling a pie crust (recipe included). They can even call pumpkins by their names in other languages: the Italian zucca, Mexican calabaza or (my favorite) the Swedish poompa. Watercolors by Phyllis Limbacher Tildes capture the charm and many functions of this popular fruit. 2004, Charlesbridge, Ages 4 to 9.
—Mary Quattlebaum

School Library Journal

K-Gr 3-In a conversational style, Farmer relates facts, history, legend, and growing tips about one of the favorite fruits of fall. In addition to the de rigueur instructions on pumpkin carving (and safety) and seed toasting, the author includes the word for the berry in other languages, a brief list of pumpkin world records, and recommended readings and Web sites. The serviceable watercolor-and-pencil illustrations feature a multicultural cast of bright-eyed, slightly stiff young children; the art is surrounded by plenty of white space. More detailed than Gail Gibbons's The Pumpkin Book (Holiday, 1999) and less poetic than George Levenson's Pumpkin Circle (Tricycle, 2004), this holiday patch of pumpkin facts will find a place in collections looking for material for Halloween and harvest time.-Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha's Public Library, WI Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.