Here are my favorite books to read for Thanksgiving:
- The Thanksgiving Story by Alice Dalgliesh
- Three Young Pilgrims by Cheryl Harness
- Pilgrims to the Rescue by Wilma Pitchford Hays
- Squanto's Journey by Joseph Bruchac
- Squanto, Friend of the White Men by Clyde Robert Bulla
- If you Sailed on The Mayflower in 1620 by Ann McGovern
- Stories of the Pilgrims by Margaret B. Pumphrey
- This book is also published under the title Margaret Pumphrey's Pilgrim Stories. The first was revised and edited by Michael J. McHugh, this second was revised and expanded by Elvajean Hall.
- The Landing of the Pilgrims by James Daugherty
This year I sorta went crazy getting Thanksgiving books from the library. It bothered me that so many of the books' main theme was saving turkeys from being killed or had a main character who was a vegetarian. Here are my thoughts about each book:
- Easy Reader / Picture Books
- Mousekin's Thanksgiving by Edna Miller -- cute story about a turkey that takes a mouse's stashes of food, then when it snows the turkey digs us the food and share with all the animals.
- Sheriff Sally Gopher and the Thanksgiving Caper by Robert Quackenbush -- we didn't even get half way through this book. K. and I decided it was really boring.
- Henry and Mudge Under the Yellow Moon by Cynthia Rylant -- the first story is about autumn, and is good. The third story is about an aunt coming to visit and is fine. The second story is about Henry's mother telling ghost stories. The stories scare Henry, but the scare Mudge even more.
- Silly Tilly's Thanksgiving Dinner by Lillian Hoban -- a fun story that will make you laugh and can be read over and over
- A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving by Charles M. Schulz -- this comic strip style story teaches us to be thankful to just be together. K. really liked this book.
- Thanksgiving is Here! by Diane Goode -- a fun story about a family's Thanksgiving day with their extended family.
- I am the Turkey by Michele Sobel Spirn -- a fun story about a boy that is the turkey in his class' Thanksgiving play, the problems is causes him, and how he saves the program.
- Molly's Pilgrim by Barbara Cohen -- this one is a keeper. A story about modern day pilgrims. This is also a video.
- 'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey -- a story about children saving turkeys from being killed for Thanksgiving dinners
- The Peterkins' Thanksgiving adapted by Elizabeth Spurr -- this one is a keeper. A super fun story!! It will have to laughing!
- An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving by Louisa May Alcott -- my friend's copy of this book has small black and white illustrations, but this one was illustrated by James Bernardin and had wonderful full-page color illustrations. This one is a keeper.
- A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting -- a story about animals finding "a turkey for Thanksgiving", but it isn't what the turkey expects.
- Over the River: A Turkey's Tale by Derek Anderson -- full of fun and lively illustrations of the song by Lydia Maria Child
- Annie and Snowball and the Thankful Friends by Cynthia Rylant -- Annie wants a table full of guests for Thanksgiving. A good read.
- The Thanksgiving Door by Debby Atwell -- this one is a keeper. A story about an elderly couple who unintentionally crashes a family's Thanksgiving, but are welcomed and have a wonderful day.
- Turkey Bowl by Phil Bildner -- the Thanksgiving a boy and is friends are finally old enough to join in the family football game, it snows too hard for the extended family to come over. The kids decide they can have their own football game and there is a surprise ending.
- The Know-Nothings Talk Turkey by Michele Sobel Spirn -- this might be a keeper. It is another book that will have you and your children laughing.
- Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation by Diane Stanley -- children and their grandma travel back in time to Plymouth. It has good illustrations and teaches about the hardships endured by the Pilgrims.
- Chapter Books
- The Hoboken Chicken Emergency by D. Manus Pinkwater -- nonsensical but entertaining
- The Thanksgiving Visitor by Truman Capote -- not really a chapter book, but not a book for little kids to read. A good story about a boy that gets bullied and then his Aunt invites the bully to Thanksgiving dinner where the boy finds a way to get even with the bully, but it backfires. Lots to talk about with older children.
- The Thanksgiving Treasure by Gail Rock -- as a first response I would tell you that I liked this story because Addie makes a friend out of a family enemy. However, when I stop to really think about the story there are problems. First, the dad uses bad language, but I skipped over that. Second, Addie repeatedly disobeys her father and grandmother by riding her bike farther from town than she is supposed to.
- The Thanksgiving Day Parade Mystery by Marion M. Markham -- a fun story of twin girls helping to solve a mystery.
- Mayflower Treasure Hunt by Ron Roy -- a fun story about some kids solving a mystery that started on the Mayflower. Although the mystery is fictitious, it does teach about life on the Mayflower and at Plymouth.
- The Turkeys' Side of It by Janice Lee Smith -- Adam and his best friend are the turkeys in their class' Thanksgiving program. At the end of the program they and some other children, dressed at food also, have to do a dance. The rest of the class teases them, but in the end, the class rallies together and has fun with it.
- Thanksgiving Stories and Poems edited by Caroline Feller Bauer -- we didn't read the whole book, but we enjoyed what we did read
- Katie Kazoo Switcheroo: Don't Be Such a Turkey by Nancy Krulik -- we didn't finish reading this book. Katie gets switched into other people, but I didn't feel like it really taught anything about the Pilgrims.
- Books I didn't get around to reading
- Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew by Carolyn Keene
- Thanksgiving Turkey Trouble by Abby Klein
- Peanut-Butter Pilgrims by Judy Delton
- Needle and Thread by Ann M. Martin
- A Journey to the New World by Kathryn Lasky
