Popcorn

I included this book with a popcorn bucket, flavor sprinkles and kernals as a gift. I think it looked fantastic. I liked that it has recipes, history, as well as fun illustrations to entertain the child it was for. Would be fun to read as it is also.

If someone came up and told me that as a punishment for the many sins of my life I was going to be forced to write a non-fiction children's picture book, I'd probably run through the streets screaming with fear. Do you have any concept how hard this must be? Making non-fiction topics palatable to kids is nearly impossible, and it takes real skill to a) Come up with a topics that kids will enjoy and b) Write a book that kids will want to read more than once. Enter Elaine Landau's clever, "Popcorn!". Written with wit, interesting on almost every page, and illustrated with flair, the book is a fine fine addition to any library (public or personal) that needs some honest-to-goodness interesting non-fiction topics to fill the shelves. First of all, you'd better make certain that the kids reading this book actually like popcorn before you hand it to them. This puppy is one thorough concoction. Effortlessly melding factoids with the history of popcorn, kids learn how this nummy snack became as beloved as it is today. Reading through the text you learn where popcorn is grown, the scientific properties that make it pop in the first place, which residents of Peru were the first to grow, pop, and eat it, and the role popcorn had with the early American Puritans. There are even tips for how to pop popcorn yourself, recipes for making popcorn balls, and a fabulous bibliography of popcorn related websites and books. The text of this book is witty, bright, and constantly interesting. It's just the reader's good luck, though, that the illustrations are just as fascinating. Now, usually I don't approve of the typical furry-woodland-creature-that-teaches-the-kids-an-important-lesson. In this particular case, the reader follows a cheery raccoon as he leads the viewer through various popcorn-related gags and parcels of information. The raccoon is done so well though that it never appears as an annoying sight gag. In fact, illustrator Brian Lies is so talented that the entire book is a visual joy to flip through. The scientific chart of what happens to popcorn kernels when they're heated is interesting. The map of popcorn raising states is interesting. Heck, even the sight gags work. How many picture books can you honestly say that's the case with? Mighty few, methinks. All in all, if you've a kid that's been assigned a scientific project but they're not interested in any potential projects, this might be the perfect solution. What kid wouldn't want to study something as tasty and fun as wonderful fluffy tasty popcorn? A great book about an interesting topic. Two thumbs way way up.

Popcorn is one of America's favorite foods and collectively, we eat as much as 1,124,000 pounds of popcorn every year. Popcorn! by Elaine Landau examines the history, lore, science, and cultural significance of this popular treat which can be traced back to about 5,600 years ago accordingly to an archaeological excavation in New Mexico. Very nicely illustrated by Brian Lies, Popcorn! will prove to be as informative as it is fun for young readers ages 6 to 10.