Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
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Children's Easy Fiction Books
Call Number
E ATWELL
Author
Title & Brief Description
Atwell, Debby
The Thanksgiving Door
After burning their Thanksgiving dinner, Ann and Ed head for the
local cafe, where they are welcomed by an immigrant family into
an unusual celebration that gives everyone cause to be thankful.
E AUCH
Beauty and the Beaks: A Turkey's Cautionary Tale
When Lance, a very pretentious turkey, arrives on the farm and
Auch, Mary Jane boasts that he is the only bird invited to a special feast, no hen is
impressed, but when Beauty learns that Lance is the main
course, she convinces the others to save him.
E AYRES
Up, Down, and Around
A garden produces a variety of edible plants, such as corn that
grows up, onions that grow down, and tomato vines that twine
all around. Peppers grow up. Potatoes grow down. Pumpkins vine
around and around. From seeds dropping into soil to corn
Ayres, Katherine
bursting from its stalks, from children chasing butterflies to ants
burrowing underground, everything in this vibrant picture book
pulses with life -- in all directions! Sprightly illustrations set the
mood for a rhythmic text that follows nature's course to a final
feast of backyard bounty.
E BATEMAN
E BILDNER
E BRIDWELL
E BUNTING
E CARR
E CHERNESKY
Gus, The Pilgrim Turkey
Gus the turkey has loved growing up on a farm, but when the
Bateman, Teresa
other animals tell him he will soon become Thanksgiving dinner,
he decides to go south to find a place of safety.
Bildner, Phil
Turkey Bowl
Ethan looks forward to the Thanksgiving Day when he and his
friends are finally old enough to play in the annual family football
game, but that day arrives full of snow and icy roads.
Clifford's First Autumn
Bridwell, Norman Summer is over, and Clifford the small red puppy, is curious
about the changes that are happening all around him.
Bunting, Eve
Carr, Jan
Chernesky,
Felicia
A Turkey for Thanksgiving
Mr. and Mrs. Moose invite all their animal friends for
Thanksgiving dinner and the only one missing is Turkey. When
they set out to find him, Turkey is quaking with fear because he
doesn't realize that his hosts want him at their table, not on it.
Dappled Apples
Rhyming text and illustrations celebrate the pleasures of fall,
from turning leaves and apple picking to pumpkins and
Halloween.
Pick a Circle, Gather Squares
Fall is here, with all its wonderful visual delights--not just colors,
but shapes! This clever concept book follows a family on a trip to
a pumpkin patch and invites children to pick out shapes from the
seasonal scenery--apple bushel circles, square hay bales,
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
diamond kites in the autumn sky! Felicia Sanzari Chernesky's
sweet verses are perfectly complemented by Susan Swan's
gorgeous collage-inspired art.
E COWLEY
Cowley, Joy
Gracias, The Thanksgiving Turkey
Trouble ensues when Papa gets Miguel a turkey to fatten up for
Thanksgiving and Miguel develops an attachment to it.
E COX
Cox, Judy
One is a Feast for Mouse: A Thanksgiving Tale
On Thanksgiving Day while everyone naps, Mouse spots one pea,
a perfect feast, but he cannot help adding all of the fixings--until
Cat spots him.
E COX
Cox, Judy
Pick a Pumpkin, Mrs. Millie!
Silly teacher Mrs. Millie gets her words wrong when the class
goes on a field trip to a pumpkin patch.
E DEAK
Deak, Erszi
E DEPAOLA
DePaola, Tomie
Pumpkin Time
From the day she plants seeds in her garden until she serves a
pumpkin pie after harvest, Evy fails to notice any of the strange
things the farm animals do as she works, from donkeys sailing
through the sky to pigs dancing around a May Pole.
Four Friends in Autumn
Four friends, Missy Cat, Mistress Pig, Master Dog, and Mister
Frog, enjoy an autumn dinner party together.
Detlefsen, Lisl
Time for Cranberries
Sam is finally old enough to help his parents harvest cranberries
on their family farm in Wisconsin, from flooding the field to
prepare the vines for the picking machine to delivering the fruit
to receiving station. Includes recipes for cranberry sauce and
cranberry pie, author's note, and glossary.
E DEVLIN
Devlin, Wende
Cranberry Thanksgiving
Maggie and her grandmother each invite a guest to their
Thanksgiving feast, featuring Grandmother's own cranberry
bread, made from a secret recipe.
E DUKE
Duke, Kathy
Ready for Pumpkins
A classroom guinea pig learns about gardening by growing his
own pumpkin.
E EHLERT
Ehlert, Lois
Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
A child describes the growth of a maple tree from seed to
sapling.
E DETLEFSEN
E FALWELL
Gobble Gobble
Falwell, Cathryn A child observes wild turkeys through the seasons. Includes facts
about this classic American bird.
E DEARING
Fearing, Mark
The Great Thanksgiving Escape
A hilarious, kid-friendly take on Thanksgiving -- full of family,
food, and lots of fun! It's another Thanksgiving at Grandma's.
Gavin expects a long day of boredom and being pestered by
distantly related toddlers, but his cousin Rhonda has a different
idea: make a break for it -- out of the kids' room to the swing set
in the backyard!
E FORD
Ford, B.G.
Albuquerque Turkey
A farmer sings the praises of his pet turkey, Albuquerque.
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
E FREEMAN
E FRIEDMAN
E GEORGE
Freeman, Don
One More Acorn
Earl the squirrel searches for acorns in the autumn in
Washington, D.C.
Thanksgiving Rules
Young Percy Isaac Gifford provides a list of ten rules for getting
Friedman, Laurie
the most out of Thanksgiving Day, especially how best to enjoy
the buffet.
In the Woods: Who's Been Here?
A boy and girl in the autumn woods find an empty nest, a
George, Lindsay
cocoon, gnawed bark, and other signs of unseen animals and
their activities.
E GIBBONS
Gibbons, Gail
The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree
As the seasons pass, Arnold enjoys a variety of activities as a
result of his apple tree. Includes a recipe for apple pie and a
description of how an apple cider press works.
E GLASER
Glaser, Linda
It's Fall
A child experiences the colors and textures of fall. Includes
nature activities to do during that season.
E GREENE
Very First Thanksgiving Day
Greene, Rhonda Rhyming verses trace the events leading up to the first
Thanksgiving Day.
E HILLERT
Why We Have Thanksgiving
An easy-to-read fictional retelling of the journey of the Pilgrims
Hillert, Margaret
to America, their struggles during the first year, and celebration
of the first Thanksgiving. Includes reading activities.
E HOLUB
Holub, Joan
E JACKSON
Jackson, Alison
E JOHANSON
Johanson, Sarah
E JULES
Pumpkin Countdown
When Miss Blue's class visits Farmer Mixenmatch's Pumpkin
Patch, the students find many ways to have fun, and a lot of
things to count.
I Know An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie
Based on the classic song about the old woman who swallowed a
fly, this retelling with a twist features an old lady attending a
Thanksgiving dinner who swallows a pie, then a whole squash, all
of the salad, and then an entire turkey. In the end, the old lady
makes a surprising and humorous contribution to the holiday
festivities.
Caillou: Happy Thanksgiving
Caillou learns what the real meaning of Thanksgiving is.
Duck for Turkey Day
When Tuyet finds out that her Vietnamese family is having duck
Jules, Jacqueline
rather than turkey for Thanksgiving dinner, she is upset until she
finds out that other children in her class did not eat turkey either.
E KIMMEL
Kimmel, Eric
Pumpkinhead
Pumpkinhead sets out to see if the rest of the world is the same
as Pumpkintown, but because of some tricky squirrels, neither he
nor the rest of his town finds out.
E KIMMELMAN
Kimmelman,
Leslie
Round the Turkey: A Grateful Thanksgiving
As they gather to celebrate Thanksgiving Day, members of an
extended family take turns describing, in rhyme, the things that
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
make them feel grateful.
E KRENSKY
E KROLL
E LAKIN
E LANDSTROM
Lionel in the Fall
For Lionel, fall means starting a new school year, raking leaves,
Krensky, Stephen
and getting to dress up as a knight and chase a dragon from
house to house on Halloween.
Kroll, Steven
Lakin, Pat
Fat Chance Thanksgiving
When their apartment burns down and they move to a much
smaller place, Mama tells Carla they can't have Thanksgiving, but
Carla thinks about all the hardships the Pilgrims faced and
figures out a way.
Boo and Baa Have Company
Boo and Baa do everything they can to get a cat out of a tree.
Cleaning the house gets complicated when Boo and Baa vacuum
Landstrom, Olof up a sock and have to empty the vacuum bag, making
everything dustier than before. The illustrations of wrestling with
the vacuum cleaner are particularly droll, but any Boo and Baa
cartoon is truly cute.
E LEE
Lee, Huy Voun
E LEVINE
Levine, Abby
E LEWIS
One Tough Turkey: A Thanksgiving Story
Recounts the "real story" of the first Thanksgiving when the
Pilgrims pursued such tough turkeys for dinner that they had to
settle for squash.
In the Leaves
On a visit to a farm, Xiao Ming shows his friends the new Chinese
characters he has learned by explaining that the characters are
like pictures.
This is the Turkey
Describes in rhyme the activities of a young boy and his
extended family as they share a special Thanksgiving.
The House of Boo!
Lewis, J. Patrick Three children visit the haunted house of Boo Scoggins on
Halloween and experience scary sights and sounds.
E MARKES
Markes, Julie
Thanks for Thanksgiving
At Thanksgiving time, children express their gratitude for the
people and things in their lives.
E MARTIN
Martin, Bill
The Turning of the Year
Describes the characteristics of each month of the year in
rhyming text and illustrations.
Mayer, Mercer
The Fall Festival
Join Little Critter and his family on their exciting road trip to the
Fall Festival. From apple picking to hayrides, discover how fun
the harvest season can be.
E MAYER
Mayer, Mercer
Just a Special Thanksgiving
Little Critter Now he is going to have a Thanksgiving he'll never
forget! From the school play to a surprise dinner for all of
Critterville, celebrate along with Little Critter and his family as
they give thanks this holiday.
E MAYR
Mayr, Diane
Run Turkey, Run!
The day before Thanksgiving, Turkey tries to disguise himself as
other animals in order to avoid being caught by the farmer.
E MAYER
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
E MCALLISTER
E MCBRATNEY
McAllister,
Angela
Brave Bitsy and the Bear
A small toy rabbit and a large woodland bear come to each
other's rescue during the winter.
Yes We Can!
Little Roo and his friends usually have a great time playing
together, but not today. They are too busy making fun of each
McBratney, Sam
other. When everyone is left in bad moods, Little Roo's wise
mother comes up with an idea that might make the threesome
make amends.
E MCCULLY
McCully, Emily
An Outlaw Thanksgiving
While travelling with her mother cross-country by train in 1896,
a young girl unexpectedly shares Thanksgiving dinner with the
notorious outlaw, Butch Cassidy.
E MCDONNELL
McDonnell,
Patrick
South
Mooch the cat helps a lonely bird find its flock, which has flown
south for the winter.
E MCNAMARA
McNamara,
Margaret
Apples A to Z
An alphabet book double as a primer on apples and apple
cultivation.
E MCNAMARA
McNamara,
Margaret
How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin
Charlie, the smallest child in his first grade class, is amazed to
discover that of the three pumpkins his teacher brings to school,
the tiniest one has the most seeds.
E MELMED
Melmed, Laura
This First Thanksgiving Day
Celebrate the very first Thanksgiving in this exuberant counting
story from best-selling author Laura Krauss Melmed. From I
dressed in linen to 10 making baskets, this rollicking verse shows
Wampanoag and Pilgrim friends preparing for and sharing a
wonderful Thanksgiving feast.
E MILGRIM
Milgrim, David
Thank You, Thanksgiving
While on a Thanksgiving Day errand for her mother, a girl says
thank you to all the things around her.
E MINOR
Minor, Wendell
How Big Could Your Pumpkin Grow?
Playing with concepts of size and scale, giant pumpkins decorate
some of America's most famous landmarks and landscapes.
E MONCURE
Moncure, Jane
Word Bird's Fall Words
Word Bird puts words about fall in his word house--leaves,
playground, football, Pilgrims, monsters, and others.
E MONCURE
Moncure, Jane
Word Bird's Thanksgiving Words
Word Bird puts words about Thanksgiving in his word house-Pilgrims, Indian corn, wigwam, pumpkin pie, and others.
Moulton, Mark
Thanksgiving Graces
Last-minute guests for a Thanksgiving meal multiply as
preparations progress, but Grandma assures her young grandson
that God will provide as much as they need to feed everyone.
Moulton, Mark
The Very Best Pumpkin
While Peter carefully tends a special pumpkin on his
grandparents' farm, quiet Meg watches from her new home next
door.
E MOULTON
E MOULTON
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
O'Connor, Jane
Fancy Nancy: Our Thanksgiving Banquet
Fancy Nancy and her family travel to her grandparents' house for
Thanksgiving dinner, and although she thinks she is mature
enough for the adults' table, Nancy is forced to sit with her sister
and cousins at the kids' table.
E OCONNOR
O'Connor, Jane
Fancy Nancy's Fabulous Fall Storybook Collection
Collects six Fancy Nancy stories, including "Splendid Speller,"
wherein Nancy, who loves to use fancy words, comes up against
a tough spelling quiz and is faced with a difficult decision.
E PARISH
Parish, Herman
Amelia Bedelia's First Apple Pie
While visiting her grandparents, literal-minded Amelia Bedelia
finally learns, despite some mishaps, how to bake an apple pie.
Parish, Herman
Amelia Bedelia Talks Turkey
When Amelia Bedelia volunteers to fill in as director of a thirdgrade Thanksgiving play, she misunderstands everything from
one girl's desire to play a big role to an opening night wish that
she "break a leg," but all is well in the end.
Peterson, Mary
Piggies in the Pumpkin Patch
Pigs have a wonderful time playing in the pumpkin patch and
other spots on the farm, encountering other animals along the
way.
Pilkey, Dav
'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving
School children on a field trip to Mack Nugget's farm save the
lives of eight turkeys in this poem based on "The Night Before
Christmas."
E OCONNOR
E PARISH
E PETERSON
E PILKEY
E RAWLINSON
Fletcher and the Falling Leaves
When his favorite tree begins to lose its leaves, Fletcher the fox
Rawlinson, Julia
worries that it is sick, but instead a magical sight is in store for
him.
E REED
Thelonius Turkey Lives
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, Thelonius Turkey becomes
Reed, Lynn Rowe
worried when Felicia the farmer starts to fatten him up and pluck
his feathers.
E ROBERTS
Thanksgiving Mice!
A group of mice have some problems when they put on a play to
Roberts, Bethany
commemorate the first Thanksgiving, but everything works out
all right in the end.
E ROCKWELL
Rockwell, Anne
Apples and Pumpkins
In preparation for Halloween night, a family visits Mr. Comstock's
farm to pick apples and pumpkins.
E ROHMANN
Rohmann, Eric
Pumpkinhead
A boy with a pumpkin for a head learns a valuable lesson about
what it means to be different.
E RYLANT
Rylant, Cynthia
Annie and Snowball and the Thankful Friends
Annie wants to have a big Thanksgiving dinner and thinks about
who she can invite to share it with her.
E SCHEER
Scheer, Julian
A Thanksgiving Turkey
A thirteen-year-old boy and his mother move to a farm in rural
Virginia, where he and his grandfather try to hunt a wild turkey.
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
E SCHERTLE
Schertle, Alice
Very Hairy Bear
Recounts the experiences of a shaggy, "boulder-big" bear as the
four seasons come to the beautiful wood which is his home.
E SCHULZ
Schulz, Charles
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
Charlie Brown is in a dilemma when Peppermint Pattie invites
herself and several friends to his house for Thanksgiving dinner.
E SERFOZO
Serfozo, Mary
Plumply, Dumply Pumpkin
Peter finds the perfect pumpkin so that he and his Dad can make
a jack-o-lantern.
E SILVANO
Silvano, Wendi
Turkey Trouble
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, Turkey nervously makes a
series of costumes, disguising himself as other farm animals in
hopes that he can avoid being served as Thanksgiving dinner.
E SMALLS
Smalls, Irene
A Strawbeater's Thanksgiving
Determined to be the strawbeater during the corn shucking
party, Jess, a small young slave boy, wrestles a bigger, stronger
boy for the honor.
E SPETTER
Spetter, JungHee
Lily and Trooper's Fall
A little girl and her dog have fun playing outdoors on a blustery
fall day.
E SPINELLI
Spinelli, Eileen
The Perfect Thanksgiving
Two families--one that is perfect and one that is far from it-celebrate Thanksgiving in their own loving ways.
E SPURR
Pumpkin Hill
The townspeople must decide what to do with thousands of
Spurr, Elizabeth
pumpkins that roll down a hill and into their midst just before
Halloween.
E STEIN
Leaves
Stein, David Ezra A curious bear observes how leaves change throughout the
seasons.
E TAFURI
Tafuri, Nancy
The Busy Little Squirrel
Squirrel is too busy getting ready for winter to nibble a pumpkin
with Mouse, run in the field with Dog, or otherwise play with any
of the other animals. The leaves have started to fall. The air is
cold. Squirrel needs to get ready for winter. He cannot nibble
with the mice. He does not have time to hop with the frogs or
run with the dogs. But there is one thing he can do!
E WALDHERR
Waldherr, Kris
Harvest
A girl and her mother spend the day gathering vegetables, fruit,
and herbs from their garden.
E WELLINGTON
Wellington,
Monica
Apple Farmer Annie
Annie the apple farmer saves her most beautiful apples to sell
fresh at the farmers' market.
E WELLINGTON
Wellington,
Monica
My Leaf Book
A young girl visits a park in the autumn to collect fallen leaves.
She identifies various trees by the shapes of their leaves and
pastes her collection into her own leaf book.
E WRIGHT
Wright, Maureen
Sneeze, Big Bear, Sneeze
Big Bear thinks that his tremendous sneezes are causing the
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
leaves and apples to fall off the trees and the geese to fly away,
but when the wind finally convinces him otherwise, he knows
what to do.
E YEE
My Autumn Book
A young girl rushes outside when the air is crisp and the sky
turns gray to observe all of the changes that autumn brings.
Yee, Wong
Herbert
Children's Nonfiction Books
Call Number
Author
J 394.2 HAY
Hayward, Linda
The First Thanksgiving
Describes how the first Thanksgiving celebration came to be.
J 394.264 BAR
Bartlett, Robert
The Story of Thanksgiving
Relates the history and customs of Thanksgiving, from the
harvest festivals of the ancient world and the first Thanksgiving
in colonial America to today's celebrations.
J 394.264 GIB
Gibbons, Gail
J 394.26 GRA
J 394.264 GRE
J 508 SIM
Title & Brief Description
Thanksgiving Day
Presents information about the first Thanksgiving and the way
that holiday is celebrated today.
1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving
Grace, Catherine Chronicles the events of the first Thanksgiving and discusses how
the holiday has changed throughout history.
Greenwood,
Barbara
A Pioneer Thanksgiving
Combining fiction and nonfiction, this dramatic story follows the
Robertson family as they prepare for Thanksgiving in the year
1841. As with all pioneer families in North America, Thanksgiving
is a special day for the Robertsons, but this year, they have more
reasons than usual to give thanks.
Autumn Across America
Describes the signs of autumn that are seen in different parts of
Simon, Seymour
the United States, such as leaves changing color, migration of
birds and insects, harvesting of crops, and changes in weather.
J 508.52 HER
Herrington, Lisa
How Do You Know It's Fall
Introduces the reader to the fall season.
J 513 NIK
Nikola-Lisa, W.
1,2,3 Thanksgiving!
A Thanksgiving counting book depicting the numbers one
through ten through scenes of the holiday.
J 634.11 GIB
Gibbons, Gail
J 635.6 KIN
King, Elizabeth
J 635.62 LEV
Levenson,
George
J 641.59 ERD
Erdosh, George
Apples
Explains how apples were brought to America, how they grow,
their traditional uses and cultural significance, and some of the
varieties grown.
The Pumpkin Patch
Describe the activities in a pumpkin patch, as pink-colored seeds
become fat pumpkins, ready to be carved into jack-o'-lanterns.
Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden
Rhyming text and photographs follow a pumpkin patch as it
grows and changes, from seeds to plants to pumpkins ready to
harvest, to jack-o-lanterns and then to seeds again.
Food and Recipes of the Thirteen Colonies
Describes some of the foods prepared in the various areas of
Kids’ Book Themes Bibliography | Thanksgiving (Fall Season)
what would become the United States during the colonial period.
Includes recipes.
J 745.5 COR
Corwin, Judith
Thanksgiving Crafts
Young readers will celebrate our cherished holidays with this
sparkling series, filled with ideas and projects to add color and
excitement to each season. Everyday materials and step-by-step
illustrated directions will appeal to teachers, club leaders, and
children.
J 811 CAR
Thanksgiving Day at Our House
A collection of poems about one family's activities on
Carlstrom, Nancy Thanksgiving Day, including pondering the history behind the
holiday, welcoming visiting relatives, praying for others, enjoying
the good food, and giving thanks at the end of the day.
J 811 LEA
Leaf By Leaf: Autumn Poems
Offers verses by twenty-five poets that highlight the special
Rogasky, Barbara
characteristics of autumn, from the first signs of fall in
September to the arrival of wintry weather.
J 974.4 FRI
J 92 SARG
Fritz, Jean
Sweet, Melissa
Who's That Stepping on Plymouth Rock?
Relates the history of Plymouth Rock since the Pilgrims first
landed on it to the present day.
Balloons Over Broadway
Award-winning artist Sweet tells the story of the puppeteer Tony
Sarg, capturing his genius, his dedication, his zest for play, and
his long-lasting gift to America--the inspired helium balloons that
would become the trademark of Macy's Thanksgiving Day
Parade.