Book Review: 'Cranberry Thanksgiving' by Wende & Harry Devlin

✰✰✰✰½ Thanksgiving on the cranberry bog farm is Grandmother's favorite. Each year she encourages Maggie to invite someone to dinner who is lonely or poor. Grandmother herself has invited Mr. Horace, who uses a gold cane, smells of lavender, and is all alone. Maggie chooses to invite her friend, Mr. Whiskers. Grandmother is less than thrilled as she suspects that Mr. Whiskers is after her secret cranberry bread recipe. Nevertheless, Maggie is hopeful Grandmother will change her mind. When there is a scuffle in the dining room followed by both guests exiting quickly, it looks like Grandmother was right. Or was she? Things are not always as they appear, and Maggie knows the truth. Just when it looks like the recipe is gone for good, Grandmother is in for a surprise.

The Bottom Line: This book originally became popular in 1971, and now it's back. The illustrations in watercolor and ink have classic appeal. This delightful tale reminds readers what is truly important at Thanksgiving: family and friends. 

And as a bonus, the secret recipe for Grandmother's Famous Cranberry Bread is included on the back cover. I took the time to make this treat and found it to be yummy, but tart. Additionally, it's beautiful with crimson cranberries and golden raisins in every slice. While I prepared the recipe according to directions, I decided to use mini loaf pans instead and reduced the baking time to 40 - 42". 

Grandma's Famous Cranberry Bread

Both the book and the recipe are highly recommended for kids in grade school. Try making the delicious recipe by asking an adult to help. It's worth the effort and will become a new Thanksgiving tradition.

Details: Cranberry Thanksgiving written & illustrated by Wende & Harry Devlin. Picture book published by Purple House Press in 2012. 32 p. ISBN: 9781930900639   

Book Review: 'Thankful' by Eileen Spinelli

✰✰✰✰½ This simple and easy-to-read picture book features different characters and what they are thankful for. There's the waitress, fireman, poet, pastor, and artist. All are thankful for something very different from their friends and family. This book highlights the many different ways there are to be thankful. 

The Bottom Line: By featuring different things to be thankful for, this gentle picture book will inspire children of all ages to take part in a November Thankfulness Challenge. Preston's illustrations bring the text to life by conveying the rhymes and blessings. Enthusiastically recommended. 

Details: Thankful written by Eileen Spinelli & illustrated by Archie Preston. Picture book published by Zonderkidz in 2015. 32 p. ISBN: 978-0-310-00088-4 

Book Review: 'A Street Cat Named Bob' by James Bowen

✰✰✰✰½ James Bowen was one of many buskers in London. Originally from Australia, Bowen had struggled to make his way. As a recovering addict, he had recently secured a flat. One day he noticed an injured cat in the hallway. He was immediately inspired to help this creature even though he could barely take care of himself. With little to spare, James sought medical help for the cat, now named Bob. After nursing Bob back to good health, Bowen released him. Given the choice, Bob had other ideas and decided to follow Bowen on his busking jobs. The man and cat quickly became an inseparable duo. And this is their story…one of friendship, adventure, survival, and love.

The Bottom Line: This heartwarming tale is perfect to read anytime…on a lunch break, while traveling, or even at the beach. It’s an easy read that will inspire you to look at people differently. Sadly, Bob passed away in 2020, but this story will live on and continue to inspire. Highly recommended for everyone interested in human-animal relationships, friendship, homelessness, and addiction.

Book Club Notes: In a nutshell, we loved this book! On a scale from 1 – 5 with 5 being the highest, the average rating for this book was 4.5. The movie was entertaining and captured the essence of the book. We enjoyed the unique perspective of seeing things from Bob’s point of view; how cute was that?

All in all, the book/movie taught us to see things from a different perspective, to stop stereotyping, and to give people (and animals) a chance. Most of us have interacted with a special animal sometime in our lives, so it was easy to connect with Bob’s story. Discussion questions are plentiful online, but the resource that stood out is available from the Okanagan Regional Library.

This book club pick is very highly recommended for book clubs interested in a feel good title that still has lots of deep topics to discuss. Check it out for your book club today!

Details: A Street Cat Named Bob: And How He Saved My Life by James Bowen. Paperback published by Thomas Dunne Books in 2012. 320 p. ISBN: 978-1-250-04867-7