Avacado Baby

by John Burningham

When the weedy Hargraves have another baby, they're concerned that it's going to be just as weak and pathetic as them. Then one day they feed it avocados.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Humor, Family, Fantasy, Food

Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bur...

Married to Helen Oxenbury They have one son and two daughters.

John Burningham was born in 1936 in Farnham, Surrey, and attended the alternative school, Summerhill. In 1954 he spent two years travelling through Italy, Yugoslavia and Israel, working at a variety of jobs.

From 1956-1959, he studied at the Central School of Art, after which he designed posters for London Transport and the British Transport Commission. He also spent a year on an animated puppet film in the Middle East. He then became a writer and illustrator of children's books, his first book, Borka: The Adventures of a Goose With No Feathers (1963) winning the Kate Greenaway Medal in 1963, an achievement he repeated with Mr Gumpy's Outing (1970).

Since then, he has written and illustrated many children's books. He is also a freelance designer of murals, exhibitions models, magazine illustrations and advertisements.

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute tale of a puny baby who doesn't like to eat...UNTIL...it's discovered that it (the baby is always referred to as "it" or "the baby," so I guess the gender is left up to the reader. Clever, huh?) LOVES avocados.



Just one avocado a day seems to imbue the tot with Popeye-like strength and it is soon pushing cars and hefting baby grand pianos.

The illustrations are simple but evocative My favorite was when the baby leaps from its stroller to save its older siblings from some bullies. You go, baby!

There is no "message" to the book. It exists solely to entertain. It can't even be taken as a parable for picky eaters as the babe never tries any other foods.



This message brought to you by the California Avocado Growers' Association.

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

The family in this story has a baby, when the baby refuses to eat and fearing it will grow up as weak as the rest of the family, they decide to try giving the baby an avocado that has mysteriously appeared in the fruit bowl. The baby loves mashed avocado and gains superhuman strength. The rest of the story shows how the baby uses these powers.

This is a lovely story, lots of fun, with a message which perhaps promotes a plant based diet!

Read on open libray.

[Judith Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son was an avocado baby, as one of my pregnancy cravings was for avocados, and since I was working near Covent Garden, I used to buy about 5 a day from the greengrocer stall which still existed at that time on the corner of Long Acre by the tube station!

[u1124876 UEL · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so excited to lay my eyes on this book in the library so I quickly swiped it off the shelf and have brought it in to the computer room to write a review on it. John Burningham tells the story of the Hargrave family which is a 2.4 family but Mrs Hargraves is expecting another baby. The hope is that the baby will not be as weak as the rest of the family.

As feared the baby is born but is weak and does not like any food until one day a mysterious avocado pear appears and they feed it to the baby. Well, how the story changes as the baby becomes so strong he deters burglars, pulls a cart of children up the hill and eventually gets so strong Mr Hargraves actually puts up a notice on the front gate stating 'Beware of the Baby'.

This is a fun story and I believe it will encourage children to try avocado pears, which are pleasant in my opinion. KS1 children will enjoy this story I think and possible points to extract from it are super foods and the teacher could bring in super foods to school (having checked with the parents about any allergies) and experiment with what children think of them.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Avocado Baby” constitutes an entertaining and funny story about a hero, but not the ordinary one but a special hero because it is just a baby. The baby that can stand against the bullies; the baby who would help with shopping but also with much more heavier jobs as moving furniture; the baby who can frighten the burglars. The most interesting is the fact that this baby’s strength is caused by eating avocado pears. At the beginning of the story, the baby is an extremely fussy eater and does not want to try anything till it gets an opportunity to taste an avocado pear which becomes its main meal.

This book is a perfect resource for a story time. The fabulous pictures and interesting adventures of the baby make it an engaging read. Moreover, it can be used as an introduction to the lesson on various fruits and vegetables and leads to a discussion on healthy eating.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

The avocado baby is a book written about the Hargraves family expecting a baby. However, when the baby is born he is very small and weak and causes the family great concern as he will not eat anything. One day a mysterious avocado appears in the fruit bowl and Mrs. Hargraves feeds it to the baby out of desperation - only to discover he loves it and eats it all! The avocado’s cause baby to grow big and strong enabling him to move furniture, stop bullies and one night single-handedly stop a robber from burgling the family home.
This book is great for children from age 3-7 and they will particularly enjoy the fantasy aspect of a baby being strong enough to stop the burglar and it might get them to try avocados!

[Sarah Jacquie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a dork, I thought the Avocado Baby was incredible as a kid. I still love it. Now I see it was a ploy to eat vegetables. Well, I never even had an avocado until I was working for Togos around 17 years old ;)

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 6-year-old checked this out of the library, and he laughs harder over it every single time we read it (which is A LOT of times so far!). The sly humor that's conveyed between the text and images is just adorable.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the most charming books for small children that I have read. My family loves it.

[Ashley Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

The ‘Avocado Baby’ is a story about the Hargraves’ family who give birth to a weak baby who develops into a very fussy eater. The older siblings suggest feeding the baby an avocado. The Mother mashes up half an avocado and feeds it to the baby. Suddenly the baby gains super strength and can lift furniture, carry shopping and even defeat two bullies by throwing them into a pond head first!

The illustrations are simply fantastic-having said that the pictures are its only saving grace. The pictures are clear and very well draw which captivates the reader’s imagination. From the pictures alone, the reader is able to deduce meaning and create their own version of the tale of the ‘Avocado Baby’.

Nonetheless, the story lacks substance and does not develop a through-line of thought. The book implies that avocado’s are a super food, which is not true. The story also sums up the idea that fruits and vegetables are good for you and keep you fit and healthy. This is somewhat misleading as we know that eating fruits and vegetables is one way of staying healthy, but it is actually a combination of both eating healthily and regular exercise which keeps you fit and healthy.

The book is very much written for its era (1980’s) however children in the Early Years Foundation Stage or KS1 would enjoy reading this book. The ‘Avocado Baby’ could be read to the children on the carpet and a discussion about healthy and unhealthy foods and regular exercise would reinforce the stories idea about healthy eating and keeping fit. The book could also be used for guided reading sessions where children in the middle ability range for literacy could read it together and look at some of the descriptive language used within the story. This could lead onto a Physical Development lesson where children learn why it is important to keep fit and healthy through physical exercise.

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this to my first grade class and they loved it. It's been a while since I've heard that kind of laughter reading out a book.

[Nat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite frankly the most unhinged children’s book I have read . I love it . I wish every children’s book I read was like this

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is about a family welcoming a new baby into the world. The family are described as physically ‘weak’ and have concerns the baby will follow suit. The avocado is discovered to be only food that the baby likes and gives him strength. The baby then goes on to make good use of his strength becoming a hero in the process. The book does many things for young children; it teaches them about a food that they may not have heard of, linking that food to human strength. The book also provides a very realistic setting with mum, dad and siblings which makes the events in the book more believable. There are examples of what bad behaviour is and the author is precise in making sure that the main character in the story opposes the unacceptable behaviour every time. I would suggest that this book would be suitable for 5-8 year old's as it lacks a big finish that older children may be looking for. A clear happy ending or serious consequence could make younger children forget details that occurred beforehand. The book ends abruptly which is perfect for children who will remember the funny parts to go along with the pictures. The story can be read out in class during carpet time by the class teacher, sad tones at the beginning and strong and loud throughout the rest. This can inspire children’s writing by displaying that the story has a point. There was a problem and a solution had to be and was found. This is a stage for children to learn once they can simply recall an event and tell a story which has no plot.
I have given the book a 4 star rating because the book would excite children. The illustrations are clear and aid the story as it unfolds.

[Deborah Malaponti · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Avocado Baby’ is an entertaining and funny story about a hero, but not an ordinary hero. The hero is just a baby. John Burningham tells the story of the Hargraves family, where Mrs Hargraves is expecting another baby. They are hoping that the baby won’t be as weak as the rest of the family. The baby is born and is a weak baby. He is an extremely fussy eater until one day a mysterious avocado pear appears and Mr and Mrs Hargraves feed it to the baby. From this point the story changes, as the baby becomes stronger and stronger. He becomes so strong that he deters burglars, he stands against bullies, helps with the shopping and helps move the furniture and Mr Hargraves has to put up a sign on the gate saying ‘Beware of the Baby’.
This story is a fun story to read with great illustrations and I believe can be used in KS1. This book is a great way of getting children to think about types of food and eating certain foods. It is also great for class story time. The adventures of the baby make it engaging to read.

[Miya Gaub · Rating 2 out of 5]

The context of this story was very alarming to me, as I do not find it at all appropriate for a young child to read. The beginning of the story introduces a family as being very weak. The mother is expecting a baby boy, and the family stands around together hoping the baby is not as weak as they are. I disliked this idea because it seemed like the author was making it sound like you have to be strong to be cool or accepted. What a terrible message to send to kids! After eating an avocado pear, the new baby is able to beat up bullies for his siblings. I did not like this part of the story either because it felt as though the author was encouraging students to fight bullies on the playground. The resolution to the bullying problem was for Avocado Baby to throw the boys into a pond. How awful! If the author was trying to push kids into eating avocados, this message is unclear in the storyline and negatively portrayed.

[Khalida wahid · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Hargrave family are a small family who are physically quiet weak. They have a new arrival to the family a little boy. He will not eat anything and the family worries he will be weak and unwell. One day Mrs. Hargraves finds an avocado and gives this to the baby – and he eats it all up. He continues to eat avocados everyday and grow very strong – so strong that he has super human powers.

This is a great book to use with children of all ages as a stimulus to think about meanings of ‘hope’ and ‘strength’. It can also work well with talking about new arrivals to families, groups, classes and how they can bring new thing to the old dynamics.

[Shemona · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Avocado Baby’ is fun book which is ideal when teaching children about growth or healthy eating, especially in EYFS and KS1. The book is about a family, The Hargraves, who have just had a new-born baby. The Hargraves want their new baby to grow up big and strong, so they try to feed him all different kinds of foods but he refuses… until they give him an avocado! He eats avocado and becomes so strong that he can tackle burglars and bullies! It’s an amusing book which both the teachers and children will like. Once the book has been read, children can find out which other types of food are good for one’s health and why.

[Shahina Khanom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is fun and enjoyable to read, it is about a baby who is fed avocado everyday and becomes very strong. The baby becomes so strong that he starts to fight off bullies, moves furniture and frightens burglars. This book is very fun to read to early years and KS1 as it is has lots of fun colourful illustrations. The story also promotes healthy eating as it shows children that eating fruits and vegetable is important an can easily be used in an introduction lesson on fruits and veg.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yet another 1001 CBYMR. I knew the author, but I’d never heard of the book. I easily found a copy at the public library. The Hargraves were quite worried their new baby would not be strong, just like the rest of them. But the baby got hold of some avocadoes and, next thing you know, this little guy is taking care of bullies and fighting off robbers.

[Joan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I suppose it was supposed to be humorous but it didn't do it for me. A baby is very strong since he eats avocado day in and day out. He does all these things for the family including chasing off big bullies and throwing them into the pond. Maybe it was funnier when written and maybe I was too cranky today for this book. But it just didn't do it for me.

[Finny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mommy says: Who knew a baby would get so strong eating avocadoes? Dr. Sears would be proud.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apparently, they're called "avocado pears" in England. Very fun.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Taylor's favorite book when he was very little!

[M.J. Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent story from the late John Burningham - very much enjoyed by adults and children in our house!

[Rosemary Standeven · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the illustrations, and the sentiment that children need to eat to grow up big and strong, but not sure that a diet of avocados is the way to go. There is no mention of other foods making it into the baby’s diet.
Also, the baby’s increase in strength seems to make it quite aggressive, although it does help out with household chores.
Why didn’t the other members of the family eat the avocado too to get over their weaknesses?

[Hooralain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Avocado is amazing!

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book to the Year 2 children in my class during SEA. The story is about a family called the Hargraves. Unfortunately the Hargraves are a physically weak family and they are worried that the new baby they are expecting will also be weak. The baby is born and sure enough he is such a fussy eater (he won't eat anything!) that the baby is the weakest of all the family. One day the baby eats an avocado pear, and then eats nothing but avocado bear and becomes an incredibly strong baby. The adventures that ensue had the class laughing every time, particularly when the baby deals with some bullys in the park.

The children enjoy this book and could be used when discussing healthy eating, good foods and diet variety. Or you can just use it to have an enjoyable read with your class.

[Madelaine O'Neil]

This book made me laugh because it was ridiculous and funny. The message for children is to eat their vegetables! This is a message that would be more useful for children who are at the stage where vegetables seem terrible to them, but older children don't need this message as much. While this is not a bad message, there was nothing challenging in this book. It would be a good book for a class of younger children to have as an option for them to read, but I wouldn't necessarily pick out this book to read to them myself. Overall though it was a cute and positive book.

[sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

fuck yeah avocado baby

edit: i've realized that this book is symbolism for how the entertainment industry and social media aka silicon valley + hollywood/youtube aka california aka avocados are becoming stronger and controlling our lives. so much to read into here. the final line is the most emblematic: "The baby gets stronger every day and of course it is still eating avocado pears."

[Kristal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A coworker told me about this book initially - a library worker recommended it to her when her children were small and she was initially doubtful that this would be a decent book as the illustrations were pretty underwhelming. However, the old saying goes, “ Don’t judge a book by its cover”. This book is hilarious and I can see why her kids loved it.