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Saturdays and Teacakes
A lyrical picture book memoir of one boy and his beloved grandmother, from award-winning author Lester L. Laminack.
Every Saturday, a young boy rides his bicycle up and down country roads, past farms and a filling station, until he reaches his Mammaw's house. She is waiting for him. There, the young boy helps her. She picks tomatoes and he pushes the lawnmower through the dew-wet grass. But the best part of the day is helping his Mammaw make teacakes from scratch and eating the hot, sweet cakes fresh from the oven.
Lester L. Laminack's richly detailed prose perfectly portrays the special relationship of a young boy and his grandmother. Award-winning illustrator Chris Soentpiet's remarkably detailed watercolor images beautifully capture the setting.
Every Saturday, a young boy rides his bicycle up and down country roads, past farms and a filling station, until he reaches his Mammaw's house. She is waiting for him. There, the young boy helps her. She picks tomatoes and he pushes the lawnmower through the dew-wet grass. But the best part of the day is helping his Mammaw make teacakes from scratch and eating the hot, sweet cakes fresh from the oven.
Lester L. Laminack's richly detailed prose perfectly portrays the special relationship of a young boy and his grandmother. Award-winning illustrator Chris Soentpiet's remarkably detailed watercolor images beautifully capture the setting.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2004
6 people are currently reading
299 people want to read
About the author
Lester L. Laminack
40 books44 followersLester L. Laminack is Professor Emeritus from department of Birth-Kindergarten, Elementary and Middle Grades Education, at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina where he received two awards for excellence in teaching [the Botner Superior Teaching Award and the Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award]. Lester is now a full-time writer and consultant working with schools throughout the United States. He is an active member of the National Council of Teachers of English and served three years as co-editor of the NCTE journal Primary Voices and as editor of the Children’s Book Review Department of the NCTE journal Language Arts (2003-2006). He also served as a teaching editor for the magazine Teaching K-8 and wrote the Parent Connection column (2000-2002). He is a former member of the Whole Language Umbrella Governing Board, a former member of the Governing Board and Secretary of the North Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children, and a former member of the Board of Directors for the Center for the Expansion of Language and Thinking. He served as the Basic Reading Consultant to Literacy Volunteers of America from 1987 through 2001. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Our Children’s Place [www.ourchildrensplace.com].
His academic publications include several books including Learning with Zachary (Scholastic), Spelling in Use (NCTE), Volunteers Working with Young Readers (NCTE), and his contributions to The Writing Workshop: Working Through the Hard Parts (NCTE), Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature (Heinemann) Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum (Heinemann, Cracking Open the Author’s Craft (Scholastic) and Unwrapping the Read Aloud (Scholastic). In addition he has several articles published in journals such as The Reading Teacher, Early Years, Science and Children, Language Arts, Teaching pre-K/8, Primary Voices, and Young Children. Lester is also the author of six children’s books: The Sunsets of Miss Olivia Wiggins, Trevor’s Wiggly-Wobbly Tooth, Saturdays and Tea Cakes, Jake’s 100th Day of School, Snow Day! and most recently, Three Hens and a Peacock all from Peachtree Publishers.
Lester was born July 11, 1956 in Flint, Michigan. His mom and dad had left their families in Alabama and moved to Michigan where his dad, Jimmy, worked for GM. But Michigan is long way from Alabama when you have a two year old and a brand new baby. So, just two weeks after Lester was born his parents packed everything and moved back to their hometown, Heflin, Alabama. They wanted Lester and his brother Scott to grow up near grandparents, aunts and uncles and lots of cousins.
When Lester was 6 the family moved again. This time to Zachary, LA where Lester attended part of 1st and all of 2nd grade. Then they moved back to Heflin where he completed 3rd grade and 4th grade. In April of 1966, while he was in the 4th grade, Lester's sister, Amanada, was born. She was so little when they brought her home that he had to hold her on a pillow. Every day when he came home from school he held her and told her stories. Some people think that's why he is a writer. Lester and Amanda have always been very close even though he is 10 years older.
When Scott was in the 7th grade and Lester was in the 5th grade and Amanda was just one year old the family moved again. This time it was to Key West, FL. They lived there under a year before moving back to Alabama.
Lester finished high school back in Heflin and then earned a BS and MS in Elementary Education from Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, AL. Then he earned an Ed.D. in Elementary Education and Reading from Auburn University, Auburn AL.
And now Lester lives downtown in Asheville, North Carolina. He starts every day with a cup of coffee, loves to listen to music and NPR. He plays saxophone and a Native American flute made from river cane. He reads a lot of children's books, Southern Fiction, poetry, and b
His academic publications include several books including Learning with Zachary (Scholastic), Spelling in Use (NCTE), Volunteers Working with Young Readers (NCTE), and his contributions to The Writing Workshop: Working Through the Hard Parts (NCTE), Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature (Heinemann) Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum (Heinemann, Cracking Open the Author’s Craft (Scholastic) and Unwrapping the Read Aloud (Scholastic). In addition he has several articles published in journals such as The Reading Teacher, Early Years, Science and Children, Language Arts, Teaching pre-K/8, Primary Voices, and Young Children. Lester is also the author of six children’s books: The Sunsets of Miss Olivia Wiggins, Trevor’s Wiggly-Wobbly Tooth, Saturdays and Tea Cakes, Jake’s 100th Day of School, Snow Day! and most recently, Three Hens and a Peacock all from Peachtree Publishers.
Lester was born July 11, 1956 in Flint, Michigan. His mom and dad had left their families in Alabama and moved to Michigan where his dad, Jimmy, worked for GM. But Michigan is long way from Alabama when you have a two year old and a brand new baby. So, just two weeks after Lester was born his parents packed everything and moved back to their hometown, Heflin, Alabama. They wanted Lester and his brother Scott to grow up near grandparents, aunts and uncles and lots of cousins.
When Lester was 6 the family moved again. This time to Zachary, LA where Lester attended part of 1st and all of 2nd grade. Then they moved back to Heflin where he completed 3rd grade and 4th grade. In April of 1966, while he was in the 4th grade, Lester's sister, Amanada, was born. She was so little when they brought her home that he had to hold her on a pillow. Every day when he came home from school he held her and told her stories. Some people think that's why he is a writer. Lester and Amanda have always been very close even though he is 10 years older.
When Scott was in the 7th grade and Lester was in the 5th grade and Amanda was just one year old the family moved again. This time it was to Key West, FL. They lived there under a year before moving back to Alabama.
Lester finished high school back in Heflin and then earned a BS and MS in Elementary Education from Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, AL. Then he earned an Ed.D. in Elementary Education and Reading from Auburn University, Auburn AL.
And now Lester lives downtown in Asheville, North Carolina. He starts every day with a cup of coffee, loves to listen to music and NPR. He plays saxophone and a Native American flute made from river cane. He reads a lot of children's books, Southern Fiction, poetry, and b
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews
December 8, 2016
I enjoyed reading this book very much. When I read it, I felt like I was transported through time to simpler era. The language in the book made it seem so real and familiar to me. The narrator mentions pedaling his bike past the Phillips 66 station, and I can immediately picture it in my mind. The dialogue between the boy and his Mammaw is one aspect that makes this book feel authentic:
"Look in the Frigidaire (that’s what she called her refrigerator) and find me two sticks of Blue Bonnet."
I can hear my own grandmother saying these words with her Southern accent.
My favorite thing about this book would have to be the INCREDIBLE illustrations! The paintings on each page are extremely realistic. I found myself being more and more impressed with each turn of the page! I have a feeling I will be opening this book again soon.
"Look in the Frigidaire (that’s what she called her refrigerator) and find me two sticks of Blue Bonnet."
I can hear my own grandmother saying these words with her Southern accent.
My favorite thing about this book would have to be the INCREDIBLE illustrations! The paintings on each page are extremely realistic. I found myself being more and more impressed with each turn of the page! I have a feeling I will be opening this book again soon.
September 5, 2018
Summary:
This story is about a young boy who rides his bicycle to his Maw-maws house every Saturday. He gives descriptive sentences explaining how he got there and all of the pedaling that he had to complete in order to get to her house. Once he got there, his Maw-maw asked him to get outside to start up the yard work while she prepared the tomatoes from the garden for their lunch. When he completed the yard work, she made him lunch and they decided to make some teacakes for dessert. The boy helped her make the teacakes and ate them as soon as they were complete. Once he ate as many as he wanted, she wrapped up the rest for him to take back to his family and he went on his way home.
Evaluate:
I really enjoyed this story because it showed the students how descriptive they needed to be in order to write a great memorable story. During each page there was something remarkable to talk about and it really allowed the imagery to take over. Even though some times the information that he was saying might not have been that great, he spiced it up because he added such detail to the sentences.
Teaching Point:
A teaching point for this story would have to be having the students to edit their paper once they finished the story. When you are reading the story, you need to make sure that you are asking the students to find the detail in the story while you reread and point out the descriptive sentences that model what they should be doing. I think that if you do this then allow them to edit their stories after, they will be able to add on to their stories to make them stronger with more detail. I have witnessed this exact teaching point in my mentor teachers classroom and I would love to do the same thing (maybe with some teacakes for the students to eat while editing their story).
This story is about a young boy who rides his bicycle to his Maw-maws house every Saturday. He gives descriptive sentences explaining how he got there and all of the pedaling that he had to complete in order to get to her house. Once he got there, his Maw-maw asked him to get outside to start up the yard work while she prepared the tomatoes from the garden for their lunch. When he completed the yard work, she made him lunch and they decided to make some teacakes for dessert. The boy helped her make the teacakes and ate them as soon as they were complete. Once he ate as many as he wanted, she wrapped up the rest for him to take back to his family and he went on his way home.
Evaluate:
I really enjoyed this story because it showed the students how descriptive they needed to be in order to write a great memorable story. During each page there was something remarkable to talk about and it really allowed the imagery to take over. Even though some times the information that he was saying might not have been that great, he spiced it up because he added such detail to the sentences.
Teaching Point:
A teaching point for this story would have to be having the students to edit their paper once they finished the story. When you are reading the story, you need to make sure that you are asking the students to find the detail in the story while you reread and point out the descriptive sentences that model what they should be doing. I think that if you do this then allow them to edit their stories after, they will be able to add on to their stories to make them stronger with more detail. I have witnessed this exact teaching point in my mentor teachers classroom and I would love to do the same thing (maybe with some teacakes for the students to eat while editing their story).
November 29, 2016
Everybody loves their grandmother. We all have memories of special things we used to do with our grandparents and how they made us feel. The young narrator in this book pedals excitedly to his grandmothers house where he goes every Saturday to make teacakes, not only are they making sweet treats, but sweet ,memories as well. Every time I read this book I picture my grandmother and I cooking every Sunday. This book is a great read with wonderful illustrations.,
July 18, 2014
A lovely tribute to someone who was clearly cherished.
September 24, 2019
Saturdays and Teacakes is about a young boy who pedals his bike across town every Saturday morning to spend the day with his grandmother (Mammaw) at her house. Once he gets there, they have breakfast before he mows the lawn while she tends to the plants in her garden. After the chores are done, the boy and his Mammaw sit on the porch swing and have fresh tomato sandwiches while they relax. Before the boy leaves, they make fresh teacakes that he gets to eat before taking the rest home.
The major themes of this story are kindness, helping others, and family.
I remember when I was younger and I would spend my weekends with my grandmother while my mom was at work. We would go to the Dallas Farmer’s Market early in the morning on Saturdays while it was still cool, sampling some of the fresh produce before buying the ones that tasted the best. We would then spend the afternoon cooking a good lunch or preparing for dinner and then relaxing by playing a game or two of Backgammon.
I would recommend this book because it is a great story depicting how a young boy chooses to spend his Saturdays helping his Mammaw. I believe it is a good example of showing children that helping people can really make a difference, as the grandmother is depicted as continually smiling throughout the book. Even though he receives a reward for doing so, we know spending this time helping his grandmother really left an impression. At the end of the book he says, “Don’t worry, Mammaw. I won’t ever forget.” Signifying that he knew the immense love she had for him.
The major themes of this story are kindness, helping others, and family.
I remember when I was younger and I would spend my weekends with my grandmother while my mom was at work. We would go to the Dallas Farmer’s Market early in the morning on Saturdays while it was still cool, sampling some of the fresh produce before buying the ones that tasted the best. We would then spend the afternoon cooking a good lunch or preparing for dinner and then relaxing by playing a game or two of Backgammon.
I would recommend this book because it is a great story depicting how a young boy chooses to spend his Saturdays helping his Mammaw. I believe it is a good example of showing children that helping people can really make a difference, as the grandmother is depicted as continually smiling throughout the book. Even though he receives a reward for doing so, we know spending this time helping his grandmother really left an impression. At the end of the book he says, “Don’t worry, Mammaw. I won’t ever forget.” Signifying that he knew the immense love she had for him.
September 6, 2018
Summary:
This book is about a boy who rides his bike every Saturday to go and see his Mammaw (grandma). The book gives an in depth description of his route to his grandmother’s house. Every Saturday his grandmother is sitting on the front porch in a rocker waiting for him to arrive. The book describes what they had to eat and drink, the boy mowing the grass, and making teacakes. Overall this book describes the boy’s visit with his grandmother, which gives the reader a glimpse into the life of someone with a different life than their own.
Evaluation:
This book was well written. However, it was not one of my favorites. Even though the book does a beautiful job describing the boys visit, the book may lose the reader’s attention because it is very slow paced and does not have a lot of action.
Teaching Idea:
Since this book does a wonderful job with descriptions, having students work on describing words in their writing may be a good idea. The teacher could pick out certain paragraphs which contain a lot of well written descriptive sentences to use as a model for the students. . The teacher would then point out to the students how the describing words helped the reader visualize what was happening in the book. The students could then use this paragraph as a model when writing their own paragraph about a visit with someone special.
This book is about a boy who rides his bike every Saturday to go and see his Mammaw (grandma). The book gives an in depth description of his route to his grandmother’s house. Every Saturday his grandmother is sitting on the front porch in a rocker waiting for him to arrive. The book describes what they had to eat and drink, the boy mowing the grass, and making teacakes. Overall this book describes the boy’s visit with his grandmother, which gives the reader a glimpse into the life of someone with a different life than their own.
Evaluation:
This book was well written. However, it was not one of my favorites. Even though the book does a beautiful job describing the boys visit, the book may lose the reader’s attention because it is very slow paced and does not have a lot of action.
Teaching Idea:
Since this book does a wonderful job with descriptions, having students work on describing words in their writing may be a good idea. The teacher could pick out certain paragraphs which contain a lot of well written descriptive sentences to use as a model for the students. . The teacher would then point out to the students how the describing words helped the reader visualize what was happening in the book. The students could then use this paragraph as a model when writing their own paragraph about a visit with someone special.
September 21, 2018
Summary:
A grown man recalls going to his grandmother's house every Saturday as a kid. He remembers riding his bike the long trek, through town and past the gas station. He remembers his grandmother making him a classic southern breakfast, going out and picking tomatoes from her garden, and using them to make lunch. He remembers baking teacakes with her, and all of the wonderful things that he did with his MawMaw.
Evaluation:
This book was a simple story, but it showed a very well developed narrative. He used lots of figurative language and detailed descriptions. He recalls more than just events; he recalls emotions and thoughts that correlated to each activity. The story was authentic and accurate, considering it was the author's personal experience. It was respectful to the cultures/ethnicities involved.
Teaching Application:
- Narrative writing model
- Critical thinking response
- Schema reflections (text-to-self, text-to-text, text-to-world)
A grown man recalls going to his grandmother's house every Saturday as a kid. He remembers riding his bike the long trek, through town and past the gas station. He remembers his grandmother making him a classic southern breakfast, going out and picking tomatoes from her garden, and using them to make lunch. He remembers baking teacakes with her, and all of the wonderful things that he did with his MawMaw.
Evaluation:
This book was a simple story, but it showed a very well developed narrative. He used lots of figurative language and detailed descriptions. He recalls more than just events; he recalls emotions and thoughts that correlated to each activity. The story was authentic and accurate, considering it was the author's personal experience. It was respectful to the cultures/ethnicities involved.
Teaching Application:
- Narrative writing model
- Critical thinking response
- Schema reflections (text-to-self, text-to-text, text-to-world)
December 1, 2018
This book is about a man remember back when he was a young boy. He would ride his bike every Saturday to his grandma's house. He would ride all through the town to get there. Once he got there, him and his grandma would make teacakes from scratch. They would then sit and enjoy them together.
This is a very sweet book about a relationship between a boy and his grandmother. The story is very warm and touching. The illustrations in this book are incredible, they almost look like pictures. This book is also amazing for showing different writing techniques.
The book I would connect this with is "Roller Coaster" to also show onomatopoeia.
I would use this for a mentor writing text for showing dialogue, dialect and onomatopoeia.
This is a very sweet book about a relationship between a boy and his grandmother. The story is very warm and touching. The illustrations in this book are incredible, they almost look like pictures. This book is also amazing for showing different writing techniques.
The book I would connect this with is "Roller Coaster" to also show onomatopoeia.
I would use this for a mentor writing text for showing dialogue, dialect and onomatopoeia.
September 20, 2017
Summary: This classic book tells the routine of the author himself as a young boy who visits his grandmother every Saturday for visiting, work, and of course, teacakes.
Evaluation: This heartfelt story is well illustrated and the text captivates the entire audience with the first sentence. It is extremely easy to visualize the events using Laminack’s amazing storytelling and can be used to teach students about voice inflection and fluency when reading aloud.
Teaching Idea: Using this text as a mentor text to pull sentences from is a great use of the book. The figurative language used is plentiful and you can never run out of things to pull from the book to teach.
Evaluation: This heartfelt story is well illustrated and the text captivates the entire audience with the first sentence. It is extremely easy to visualize the events using Laminack’s amazing storytelling and can be used to teach students about voice inflection and fluency when reading aloud.
Teaching Idea: Using this text as a mentor text to pull sentences from is a great use of the book. The figurative language used is plentiful and you can never run out of things to pull from the book to teach.
April 30, 2018
I loved this book because of one, the illustrations that filled up the page and two, because of the story. I could relate to the boy going to this grandmother's house because I visit my grandma frequently and we would always go shopping, cook, clean, and watch tv together. This would be such a great book to read aloud to children.
March 25, 2021
Genre: Contemporary Realistic
Grade Level: K-2
I thought this was a super cute book about a boy that goes and visits his grandma once a week. I thought the words were super descriptive and painted a really good picture for the reader. The words paired with the pictures were even better. The author and illustrator did a great job at creating this work of art.
Grade Level: K-2
I thought this was a super cute book about a boy that goes and visits his grandma once a week. I thought the words were super descriptive and painted a really good picture for the reader. The words paired with the pictures were even better. The author and illustrator did a great job at creating this work of art.
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February 22, 2019This book was very relatable. It was about a little boy who visits his grandmother every Saturday, and the process of how he gets there and what they do. It makes you think of your own experiences with you grandparents, and how it is important to remember the little things.
April 7, 2019
The most striking thing about this book to me were the illustrations. The watercolor paintings were simply stunning. I also loved the simplicity of the story. It was so touching, personal, and relatable. 1st-5th
March 24, 2020
I am reading through an article about 59 best kids books from each state. This book is Alabama. I would love to read this book for a story time and enjoy tea cakes right after. Deliciousness. Overall it was a great little story.
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March 31, 2020This book has good illustrations. It also has repetitive text, making it easy for students to catch on. It's a realistic book, so it can help students think about something they do every weekend with their family or a family member and write about it.
November 1, 2023
The tale of reflection as an unknown protagonist shares with the reader how he spent his Saturdays with his grandmother as he mowed the grass and she picked tomatoes from the garden. They would end each visit making and baking teacakes.
September 27, 2017
Loved this sweet memoir about a little boy and his special Saturday tradition serving his grandma and baking tea cakes.
April 25, 2018
This was a fun book to have the opportunity to connect with because most students have the ability to connect with it!
May 23, 2018
Mentor text - figurative language, series of events and timeline writing with description.
September 11, 2018
It reminded me of my childhood, and the artwork was phenomenal!
April 30, 2019
Tells of a young boy visiting his grandparents. Shows students how to use transitional words to move the story along, process of getting to his grandparents.
October 1, 2019
My review...
Summary
Theme
Personal response
Recommendation statement
Summary
Theme
Personal response
Recommendation statement
October 10, 2019
Awwwww. This is a really lovely, special story. I loved the illustrations. They were hyperrealistic but still soft around the edges, like a memory. Grandparents are such special people. <3
December 1, 2019
This brings back lots of memories of my grandma.
June 18, 2023
Upper Elementary
I love this story! The figurative language and the descriptions are so well written! I also love the sweetness of a relationship between a Grandmother and Grandson.
I love this story! The figurative language and the descriptions are so well written! I also love the sweetness of a relationship between a Grandmother and Grandson.
October 3, 2024
Cute smalltown book love the cozy feels. Good recommend children's book.
February 19, 2025
good for teaching figurative language
May 2, 2019
This book reminds me of the days when I used to go to my grandmothers house to help her with yard work in exchange for delicious food. However, I did not have to travel through town on a bike like he did.
October 7, 2019
Summary: This book is about a young boy who spends his day making Teacakes with his grandmother. The book goes through the different phases of making teacakes. It starts out with him riding his bike to his grandmothers house and then they make the dough, they role it out and cut out the teacakes. He then enjoys his teacakes with his grandmother and takes the rest home with him in a bag.
Evaluation:The author uses the readers senses including smell, sight, touch and hearing to describe what the main character is experiencing when making Teacakes. The story demonstrates the importance to spend time with family and to make memories doing something we enjoy such as teacakes.
Teaching Opportunity: For this story, a great teaching opportunity could be math to learn measurements of the ingredients. If permitted, maybe the class could make teacakes. Another teaching opportunity would be science and how the ingredients are mixed together and bake.
Evaluation:The author uses the readers senses including smell, sight, touch and hearing to describe what the main character is experiencing when making Teacakes. The story demonstrates the importance to spend time with family and to make memories doing something we enjoy such as teacakes.
Teaching Opportunity: For this story, a great teaching opportunity could be math to learn measurements of the ingredients. If permitted, maybe the class could make teacakes. Another teaching opportunity would be science and how the ingredients are mixed together and bake.
March 25, 2014
I love "good ol' boy" "feel good" books like this. If you read the title page, you will discover that this story is based on the author's childhood in Heflin Alabama. The dialogue (words) in the story remind me of The Beverly Hillbillies. No offense to anyone.
This 29 page story is about a 10-year-old looking boy who visits "Mammaw" every Saturday. "Mammaw" is his grandmother who's a widow. Every Saturday morning the boy's mom lets him pedal pedal pedal up & down dirt roads on his bicycle for miles to Mammaw's house. Mammaw is always waiting for him on the porch. Since Mammaw lives alone, she puts her grandson to work mowing the lawn and doing other jobs while she works in the garden. The boy never complains though. I like how the book uses country terms like: car-house (garage), ferns, reckon, etc.
After the boy has finished mowing the lawn, she brings him a tall glass of sweet iced tea. "You just cool off and rest a spell. I 'spect we need a bit more sugar in this.
She also brings him tomatoes from her garden. Mammaw says..."Now them's some good tomatoes. I know how you like a good tomato sandwich. Don't they taste a whole heap better when you've just picked 'em?"
This book is filled with names that make the story more authentic. It actually names the streets the boy rides past on his bike. At Mammaw's house, I counted 4 name-brands used in the text: Red Diamond Coffee, Golden Eagle Syrup, Frigidaire, Blue Bonnet margarine.
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This book would be a great way to teach dialect to children. Children need to know that there are different ways of talking and sometimes people use words that are different from ours. I would point out the rural, Southern words and let them try to decode the words based on the context clues.
This 29 page story is about a 10-year-old looking boy who visits "Mammaw" every Saturday. "Mammaw" is his grandmother who's a widow. Every Saturday morning the boy's mom lets him pedal pedal pedal up & down dirt roads on his bicycle for miles to Mammaw's house. Mammaw is always waiting for him on the porch. Since Mammaw lives alone, she puts her grandson to work mowing the lawn and doing other jobs while she works in the garden. The boy never complains though. I like how the book uses country terms like: car-house (garage), ferns, reckon, etc.
After the boy has finished mowing the lawn, she brings him a tall glass of sweet iced tea. "You just cool off and rest a spell. I 'spect we need a bit more sugar in this.
She also brings him tomatoes from her garden. Mammaw says..."Now them's some good tomatoes. I know how you like a good tomato sandwich. Don't they taste a whole heap better when you've just picked 'em?"
This book is filled with names that make the story more authentic. It actually names the streets the boy rides past on his bike. At Mammaw's house, I counted 4 name-brands used in the text: Red Diamond Coffee, Golden Eagle Syrup, Frigidaire, Blue Bonnet margarine.
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This book would be a great way to teach dialect to children. Children need to know that there are different ways of talking and sometimes people use words that are different from ours. I would point out the rural, Southern words and let them try to decode the words based on the context clues.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews