A Strawbeater's Thanksgiving

This book truly glows! Both the story and illustrations are warm, loving and full of life. A festive atmosphere of hope and thankfulness for what happiness is possible even amongst the harshness of a slave's daily life is warmly conveyed. I particularly valued the fact that this book depicts an alternate (rather than traditional) view of the Thanksgiving holiday. Thanksgiving is what you make of it. This book can be particularly meaningful to those whose ancestors came to America as slaves, as they see their own history in the story.

In the story A Strawbeater's Thanksgiving, Irene Smalls uses narratives written by slaves to write a delightful book about the heart and strength of people living in horrible times. With the colorful pictures and the wonderful plot, Smalls's book will entertain and inspire all of its readers. Smalls began the book with a mother and her child working in the "trash gang" during the corn harvest. The mother knew that the boy "had high ideas" for himself and she wanted him to have a better life than that of a slave. The boy simply wanted to be the strawbeater at the celebration that the slaves attended when the harvest was in. The strawbeater was the lucky boy who got to stand behind the person playing the fiddle and beat on the strings like a drum. In order to get the honor of doing this, he had to stand up against an older boy who had been the strawbeater for a long time. Melodye Benson Rosales did a beautiful job illustrating the book. All of the paintings that were used filled the book with excitement. The realistic expression of the faces of the slaves worked well with Smalls's story to bring the book to life. When the slaves were smiling at the celebration, or exhausted from the day's work, Rosales brilliantly brought out the mood with her use of color. In the scene where a young slave girl is bringing an old man a plate of dinner, all if the minute details that were presented by the story were incorporated into the illustration by Rosales. The smiles on the faces of the two people are perfect for the moods presented by Smalls. The plot in Smalls's story is full of inspiration. The young boy in the story is presented with a challenge that he must face in order to accomplish his dreams. In the scene where Jess, the young boy, gets pushed down by the older boy, Nathaniel, he still was not ready to give up his dream. "I'se gon be strawbeater!" he yelled back at Nathaniel while lying in the dirt. Jess's mother was always very supportive of him and would tell him stories about the corn shucking parties. Irene Smalls did a beautiful job incorporating her moral into the story while making it interesting to both young readers and to adults. Anyone who reads her book will be inspired by Jess's courage. Irene Smalls and Melodye Benson Rosales work together to create a wonderful story full of beautiful pictures and life. The expression in Rosales paintings, brought excitement to the story, while Smalls's plot brought courage and a moral that will captivate all of their readers. By standing up for his dreams, Jess was able to overcome great odds to become the strawbeater. All readers could use a little bit of his courage in their every-day lives. Briana Beckworth