Thanksgiving Day Thanks

by Laura Malone Elliott, Lynn Munsinger (Illustrator)

Overview

Laura Malone Elliott and Lynn Munsinger have created another holiday story about the lovable characters from A String of Hearts.

Perfect for a teacher's classroom or a child's home bookshelf, Thanksgiving Day Thanks tells the story of Sam trying to figure out what he's thankful for.Sam also works on a special project to share at the Thanksgiving feast—his own version of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!

Parents and teachers will find inspiration for other Thanksgiving crafts and projects in this charming and funny storybook. A section at the back includes fun Thanksgiving facts.

Full of creativity, humor, and heart, Thanksgiving Day Thanks celebrates friendship, family, and the many other blessings in our lives for which we give thanks.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780060002367
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	08/27/2013
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.25(d)
Lexile:	570L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Laura Malone Elliott is the author of Under a War-Torn Sky, a NCSS/CBC Notable Book in Social Studies, a Jefferson Cup Honor Book, and winner of the Borders' Original Voices Award, and its sequel, A Troubled Peace, also a NCSS/CBC Notable; Annie, Between the States, an IRA Teacher's Choice and NYPL Book for the Teen Age; Give Me Liberty; and Flying South, a Bank Street College Best Children's Book. She lives in Virginia with her family.

Lynn Munsinger has illustrated many favorite books for children, including The Teeny Tiny Ghost and Whooo's Haunting the Teeny Tiny Ghost? by Kay Winters. She divides her time between Vermont and Massachusetts.

Editorial Reviews

09/09/2013
Sam the bear, previously seen in A String of Hearts (2010), struggles to figure out what “one special thing” he’s thankful for as his classroom gears up for a Thanksgiving celebration. Sam’s classmates are grateful for football, shopping, and marshmallow-topped sweet potatoes, and as Sam considers his answer, Elliott incorporates an array of holiday activities into the story that will be a boon for teachers and families alike: creating placemats from wax paper and autumn leaves, donating to food drives, and making bead necklaces to represent wampum, among others. Munsinger is, as usual, attentive to the emotions of her anthropomorphic animal cast, and at Sam’s lowest (when his parade-ready balloons nearly fly away), a classmate’s quick thinking—and good aim—help save the day. While Sam’s eventual realization of what he’s thankful for (his family) won’t surprise anyone, Elliott does a commendable job of including a great deal of information about Thanksgiving history into the story and in endnotes, including a bit of Wampanoag vocabulary and some guesses as to the menu of that first 1621 feast. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Bolstered by warm watercolor cartoon illustrations, this book is a perfect delivery system for a wealth of knowledge about Thanksgiving, with the story suggesting that family and friends are the main things to be thankful for.” — ALA Booklist

“Elliott does a commendable job of including a great deal of information about Thanksgiving history into the story and in endnotes, including a bit of Wampanoag vocabulary and some guesses as to the menu of that first 1621 feast.” — Publishers Weekly

Praise for A String of Hearts: “The delightful title sets the tone for this sweet story of friendship. A lovely Valentine story about the real meaning of friendship.” — School Library Journal

Praise for A String of Hearts: “Munsinger and Elliott sensitively convey classroom popularity dynamics and Valentine’s Day butterflies; the moment when Sam realizes that it’s Mary Ann he really likes should touch even Valentine’s Day grouches.” — Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

Bolstered by warm watercolor cartoon illustrations, this book is a perfect delivery system for a wealth of knowledge about Thanksgiving, with the story suggesting that family and friends are the main things to be thankful for.

ALA Booklist

K-Gr 2—Bright, cheery, and expressive illustrations perfectly complement this sweet story about Sam's holiday dilemma. The bear cub's class is getting ready for Thanksgiving by making projects and sharing what they are most thankful for. Poor Sam can't think of what to do for his project or what makes him feel grateful. After much thinking, he attempts to re-create the Thanksgiving Day Parade, but a strong wind ruins his project. Luckily his friend Mary Ann, a resourceful squirrel, uses her arrow-shooting skills to rescue one balloon and save the day. This prompts Sam to finally realize what he is thankful for: time spent with his family and wonderful friends. This book will foster discussion about family traditions and gratitude. The author's note is an age-appropriate summary of the first Thanksgiving; it's followed by a page of interesting facts related to the holiday and its inception.—Jasmine L. Precopio, Fox Chapel Area School District, Pittsburgh, PA

School Library Journal

2013-08-15
Sam has trouble thinking of what he is most grateful for when his class celebrates Thanksgiving, and Elliott has trouble sustaining the focus on group relationships begun with Sam's first outing (A String of Hearts, 2010). Sam's classmates have no difficulty giving thanks for football, sweet potatoes and shopping. Led by Mrs. Wright, the class discusses the first Thanksgiving (Native Americans taught Pilgrims to plant and hunt; Pilgrims celebrated their friendship and the harvest with a feast). Then the students brainstorm ways to celebrate—costumes, food, crafts and a yarn turkey whose feathers are made up of the students' thanks—but that only increases Sam's anxiety. He does manage to think of something for the day of the feast, but will the wind steal it? Mary Ann's bow-and-arrow practice pays off, rescuing at least part of Sam's surprise, and Sam now knows just what to write on not one, but two feathers. It's just too bad more of the book doesn't focus on the close relationships among the students. One page of backmatter tells more about the relationship between the Native Americans and the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving, while another provides some facts about the modern-day Thanksgiving celebration. Munsinger's sweet, enthusiastic and diverse anthropomorphized animal cast is quite busy with individual projects, which all turn out, rather unrealistically, spectacularly. With its wide variety of activities and crafts, this is sure to spark some classroom celebration ideas, though it otherwise doesn't stand out from other holiday titles. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews