Review of Fall Pumpkins: Orange and Plump by Martha E.H. Rustad & Amanda Enright

Publisher: Millbrook Press

Series: CloverLeaf Books: Fall's Here!

Release Date: September 1, 2011

Buying Links:  Amazon  The Book Depository

Book Blurb (from goodreads):

It's time for a trip to the pumpkin patch Find out how pumpkins grow. See the many things we do with pumpkins. Let's carve a jack-o'-lantern. Spooky What happens in fall? Find out in the Fall's Here series, part of the Cloverleaf Books collection. These nonfiction picture books feature kid-friendly text and illustrations to make learning fun

My Thoughts:

The marketing copy for the book describes it thus: “It’s time for a trip to the pumpkin patch! Find out how pumpkins grow. See the many things we do with pumpkins. Let’s carve a jack-o’-lantern. Spooky! What happens in fall? Find out in the Fall’s Here! series, part of the Cloverleaf Books™ collection. These nonfiction picture books feature kid-friendly text and illustrations to make learning fun!”

I had trouble pinning down the intended age group for this book. The art seems aimed at pre-schoolers while the text is a mix. The vocabulary and concepts are kindergarten and first grade while the tone is simplistic and occasionally patronizing. I think it would work for most pre-schoolers on up to first grade, though the older kids may find that it’s not substantial enough for them.

The concepts are explained simply and clearly, with extra details on the side of the page on a leaf. The information presented there briefly explains on the concepts presented in the main narrative of the page.
The art is ordinary but pleasant. One thing that I did like is that the characters in the book are African-American, or possibly Hispanic, the art was a little vague. Their ethnicity is irrelevant to the story, it’s just a given. The focus is on pumpkins, not the characters. Often, books about the seasons or holidays portray Caucasian families, even when it makes no difference to the story and other ethnicities would work just as well.

It’s okay, but there are better books for exploring pumpkins with young children.

I received an eARC from NetGalley.