Wishes for a Delicious Thanksgiving

This time of year makes me nostalgic for home and family and my parents’ delicious cooking.  My mom and dad have planning Thanksgiving dinner for at least a month now, and the meal will be gourmet feast.  So when I started thinking about Thanksgiving books, pilgrims weren't the first thing to come to mind.  Instead, I thought of Daddy Makes the Best Spaghetti by Anna Grossnickle Hines, because my dad has always made the best spaghetti (and turkey and stuffing and potatoes).  It’s a book about the simple joys a family can find cooking and playing together.  My second thought was of Cynthia Rylant’s The Relatives Came.  You see, when those relatives from Virginia show up, “You’d have to go through at least four different hugs to get from the kitchen to front room.”  Whenever, I read that book, I find myself thinking of my cousins and aunts and uncles, because in my family Thanksgiving is about squeezing as many family members as possible around the dining room table; well, that and the fried oysters.

Some other favorites about family visits are Bigmamma’s by Donald Crews and Going Home by Eve Bunting.  Both are about kids traveling to see their grandparents.  The first shares the emotions I remember as a child, the excitement of visiting grandparents who loved me unconditionally.  The second is about two kids who come to understand a little more about their parents when they travel to Mexico for the first time. 

Cooking together and sharing a meal seems to be a universal way of bringing people together.  And many authors have written about it.  Look for Strega Nona by Tomie Depaola, Thundercake by Patricia Polacca, and The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins.  The last is not just about sharing cookies, it also teaches math.  One of my favorites is Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto; it’s about a little girl who thinks she’s lost her mother’s ring in the tamale batter.  Saturdays and Teacakes by Lester Laminack is another wonderful book about a boy who enjoys making cookies with his grandmother.  I met Laminack at a professional conference.  He’s an engaging and entertaining presenter, but when he spoke about his grandmother, he got serious.  He said, “I’m certain she knew I was gay, but loved me anyway.  And not everyone in my family did.”  When you read the book, you understand how strong the love was between grandson and grandmother.

 

I’m thankful to spend the holidays with my wonderful and loving family.  I hope everyone has a very happy Thanksgiving, the kind you read about in story books.

Books about Food and Family

Daddy Makes the Best Spaghetti by Anna Grossnickle Hines

The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant

Bigmamma’s by Donald Crews

Going Home by Eve Bunting

Strega Nona by Tomie DePaola

Thundercake by Patricia Polacca

The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins

Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto

Saturdays and Teacakes by Lester Laminack

Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin Jr.

Owl Moon by Jane Yolen

Our Granny by Margaret Wild

The Wednesday Surprise by Eve Bunting