How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? »

Margaret McNamara is the author of the popular Robin Hill School early reader series. The Pumpkin Patch, in this series, was awarded the Oppenheimer Toy Portfolio Best Book AwardÑGold. She lives in New York City.G. Brian Karas is the versatile and acclaimed illustrator and writer of many books for children, including Are You Going to Be Good? (a New York Times Best Illustrated Book), Home on the Bayou (recipient of the Boston Globe?Horn Book Award), and Muncha, Muncha, Muncha by Candace Fleming. He lives in Rhinebeck, New York.

"HOW MANY SEEDs in a pumpkin?" Mr. Tiffin asks his class as they gather around the big, medium, and small pumpkins on his desk. Robert, the biggest kid, guesses that the largest one has a million seeds; Elinor, sounding like she knows what she's talking about, guesses the medium one has 500 seeds; and Anna, who likes even numbers better than odd ones, guesses that the little one has 22. Charlie, the smallest boy in the class, doesn't have a guess. Counting pumpkin seeds is messy business, but once the slimy job is done, to everyone's surprise, the smallest pumpkin has the most seeds! As Charlie happily exclaims, "Small things have a lot going on inside of them."

Julie RoachCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information. - School Library Journal

K-Gr 2
Charlie, the smallest kid in class, hates lining up by size. One day, his teacher brings three pumpkins to school-small, medium, and large-and asks the children to guess which one contains the most seeds. After a round of guessing, they open them up and dig in to find out. This messy job yields a surprising answer that leaves Charlie saying, "Small things can have a lot going on inside them." Karas's characteristic watercolor illustrations done in a fall palette depict a diverse, modern classroom full of warm and humorous details. Spreads of the seeds sorted by twos, fives, and tens encourage readers to count along with the students. Intriguing facts about pumpkins, including how to tell which yield the most seeds, conclude the book. This enjoyable story, sprinkled with math and science lessons, should be a first-purchase consideration.