Food for Life and Laughter

Can you think of a picture book that stayed with you long after you'd read it? Well, today's book is one of those for me.

It's not my typical book pick - although maybe it is. You see, it's a simple book with few words, but the photographs will make you laugh - and think - at the same time. Those two words are not ones that usually go together so well much of the time. It's not easy for an author - or a comedian - to pull off effectively. So, it's the book's uniqueness that sets it apart for me. An added plus is that it brings a smile to my face with every turn of the page.

Who wouldn't laugh at an orange winking at them? Or, penguins carved from eggplants? Green pepper frogs? Mushroom people on a see-saw made of celery? A radish man driving in a cucumber car? And that's just tip of the iceberg lettuce!

Food For Thought, by Saxton Freymann and Joost Elffers, brings you a game of fruit and vegetable show-and-tell. Without the tell part! Each photograph is accompanied by a word or two - and you have to fill in your own blanks. Hence, your line of thought could go in many different directions.

Or, you could just laugh at the photo and move on. The beauty is that with every turn of the page, and every time you open the book - you never know where the pages will take you. That's the power of an almost wordless book.

Food for Thought: The complete book of concepts for growing minds is perfect for children between the ages of 3 and 6, who are learning about shapes, colors, numbers (1-10), letters, and opposites. Budding readers will get a kick out of recognizing letters and words too.

You may be familiar with other books in this series, such as Food Play, Fast Food, and How Are You Peeling? (bkshelf) (Scholastic Bookshelf), which all complement each other nicely.

While children playing with food is not usually a good thing, anything that gets them learning and having fun at the same time, is. And you never know - maybe making their own food creations before a meal might inspire them to try new things? Or not, depending on the child and the time of day!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this picture book as much as I have. If you're having a particularly rough day, it could be just the thing you need to make it a little brighter.

And by the way - there's a little Valentine tie-in also, as one of the photos is of a heart-shaped strawberry (with the word heart next to it), and two strawberry people leaning on each other. The stems are the ears!  Very cute...

Books like these might bring all kinds of art, and even creative writing and greeting card making, out of your child. Of course, they might start making sculptures out of their food, too. The possibilities are endless.

Do you have a favorite book in this series? Did your child see food differently after looking at it, or apply its concepts to real life in some way? We'd love to hear about your experience.

You can bring diversity into the discussion, and expand upon the concept of gardening, by continuing on with The Culture of Food and School.