Bread and Jam for Frances [Hardcover]

Russell Hoban (Author), Lillian Hoban (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Frances is a fussy eater. In fact, the only thing she likes is bread and jam. She won't touch her squishy soft-boiled egg. She trades away her chicken-salad sandwich at lunch. She turns up her nose at boring veal cutlets. Unless Mother can come up with a plan, Frances just might go on eating bread and jam forever!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Frances loves nothing better than jam and bread, and turns up her nose at other kinds of food. Then her mother starts giving Frances jam and bread for breakfast, lunch and dinner. "What I am/is sick of Jam," Frances sings to herself. That's the end of Frances's jam-only days, as she discovers, in her own winsome way, that variety really is the spice of mealtimes.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Russell Hoban is the author of more than 20 books for children and adults. He is perhaps best known for his character Frances the badger, featured in A Bargain for Frances, A Baby Sister for Frances, Best Friends for Frances, A Birthday for Frances, and Bread and Jam for Frances, all illustrated by Lillian Hoban. He also wrote Bedtime for Frances, illustrated by Garth Williams, and the modern classic The Mouse and His Child. He passed away at the age of 86 in 2011.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; Revised edition (September 9, 1964)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060223596
• ISBN-13: 978-0060223595
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (44 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #323,704 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars BEWARE: NOT THE ORIGINAL VERSION, May 30, 2009

By 

A Reviewer (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bread and Jam for Frances (I Can Read Book 2) (Paperback)

This was one of my favorite books when I was young, and I was happy to read the library's copy to my little ones. However, when I purchased this version on Amazon, it was not the same - they left out sentences here and there which, after reading the library's copy over and over and over, were sorely missed.

If you've never read this book before, this version may be ok. However, I'd recommend sticking with the original, unabridged edition. It's not much longer (maybe 1 or 2 pages total?) but is better with all the original text.

Another good one about picky eaters is the D.W. the Picky Eater in the Arthur series.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a cute classic story about a picky eater!, July 17, 2002

By 

christinemm - The Thinking Mother (Houston Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Bread and Jam for Frances (I Can Read Book 2) (Paperback)

This is a cute and captivating tale of Frances, the picky eater who only wants to eat bread and jam. Her parents handle her food refusal by indulging her with bread and jam at every meal and snack. She soon tires of it and wants to eat what everyone else is eating: a well-rounded meal.

This is a cute tale with little rhymes that Frances sings to herself with her food musings. The illustrations are adorable, they are not a visual assault as some other children's books have. This book was first published in the 1960s and as with other picture books of that time, has nice long prose, a good length of a story.

Both parents and children who deal with fussy eaters will appreciate this funny tale. It is a classic that is sure to be a favorite!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A timeless book for all ages, June 29, 2001

By 

A. Sullivan "asullivn" (Columbia, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bread and Jam for Frances (I Can Read Book 2) (Paperback)

I remember falling in love with "Bread and Jam for Frances" when I was a child and I was eager to see if my 3 year-old daughter would be equally fond of it. It's one of her favorites. We've read this book before bedtime almost every night for the past month.

When fussy eater Frances refuses to try anything new to eat, her mom and dad teach her a loving lesson in how you can have too much of a good thing. My daughter likes pointing out all the different food that's represented in Lillian Hoban's wonderful illustration and she's memorized all of Frances's charming little songs about jam and food. The love, humor and gentle nature of this book make it a good one to pass down from generation to generation.