Thanksgiving Is... » (Reprint)

In this bountiful Thanksgiving offering, Gail Gibbons walks young readers through the entire history of harvest celebrations, from ancient Egyptian times to the Pilgrim and Indian Thanksgiving of 1621 (which lasted three days!) A cornucopia of fun.

Sharon Salluzzo - Children's Literature

In a simple text of two or three lines per page, Gibbons presents clear and concise explanations of the American Thanksgiving. Beginning with the date for the celebration, she then goes back to the traditions of early harvest festivals, followed by information about the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving. When it became a holiday, its symbols and the variety of ways in which people spend the day conclude the book. There is a very brief mention of the date for the Canadian Thanksgiving. The illustrations show families and friends together, the seventeenth century Pilgrims in their colony, their interaction with the American Indians ,and the twenty-first century Americans in various activities. A joyous explanation of the holiday that will brighten the collection of Thanksgiving books. 2004, Holiday House, Ages 5 to 8.