Nora and Gramp are collecting sap from maple trees to make maple syrup. The horses, Bonnie and Stella, are working hard, too, pulling the heavy sap tank through the snow from tree to tree. This third story about Nora and her grandparents brings the beautyof a Vermont farm in early spring vividly to life.
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Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-K?This third book featuring young Nora and her grandparents finds them engaged in the late winter ritual of sugaring on their small Vermont family farm. With its comforting tone, the smoothly written story is about giving and caring as well as the process of converting sap into syrup. As Nora helps her grandfather pour the sap from the trees, she attempts to give the patient workhorses a taste. Her efforts to reward them mirror the stages of the syrup: it flows through her fingers as sap from the tree; it's sticky, but still too runny after it has been boiled down to syrup; but is just right to give as a treat to the horses when Gram boils it down further into hard maple sugar. The realistic watercolor illustrations effectively capture the scenes; color and texture are skillfully used to depict the cold, hard job of gathering the sap and the hot steamy atmosphere of the sugar house. This satisfying story will be a welcome addition during any season.?Caroline Ward, Nassau Library System, Uniondale, NY
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Ages 3^-7. In this sequel to Mowing (1994) and No Foal Yet (1995), Nora helps Gramp make maple syrup and sugar. The two collect sap from the maple trees and transport it on a horse-drawn rig to their sugarhouse, where the sticky liquid boils for many hours in a long pan atop a special wood-burning stove. At just the right time, they pour off some thick maple syrup, leaving the rest to boil longer and turn into maple sugar. This fictionalized portrayal allows Nora to take center stage in the sugaring process, and although adults may question the safety of Nora's standing so close to an open pan of boiling syrup, listeners will benefit from a close-up view of the entire procedure. Smith's watercolor-and-colored-pencil illustrations convey the close relationship between Nora and her grandparents as well as each stage of the sugaring. Aimed at a younger audience than Kathryn Lasky's Sugaring Time (1983), this can be paired with Diane Burns' Sugaring Season (1990) or the sugaring chapters from Wilder's Little House in the Big Woods (1987). Kay Weisman
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
If you've need had the chance to make maple sryup for yourself then this book will be the closest way to experience the joy of winter in New England. Once again Nora and Gramps have a farm adventure that makes you wish you lived with them! The beautful pictures show details in the horses that jump out at you. Our 5 year old loves all these books and even the one year old with sit and point out Bonnie on every page. A great family book.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Library Binding
Nora helps her grampa gather sap to make maple syrup. Together, the collect the sap and pour it into big buckets. They pour the big buckets into a tank on a horse drawn sleigh, and the horses haul the tank down to the sugar shack. Nora is concerned that the horses get a maple treat to reward them for their hard work. The book is quite informative and engaging. The story is not at all scary. The book has about 1000 words.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Nora and her grandfather, with the help of two horses, tap the maple trees on their Vermont farm and boil the sap into syrup. At one point Gramp leaves Nora alone, and she adds a drop of cream when the syrup boils up, preventing it from boiling out of the pan. She also takes initiative to share sap and syrup with the horses.
The family members are dressed in modern clothes, but their practice is an old one, as is their equipment. Haas' writing is excellent, and Smith's evocative watercolor paintings vividly render the crisp outdoor cold, which contrasts with the steamy indoor warmth in the boiling shed. Nora's generosity toward the horses is reminiscent of biblical admonitions for people to care for their animals that serve them (Deuteronomy 25:4; Proverbs 12:10). The relational bond between grandparents and grandchild is nearly tangible, and Nora's participation in this exciting grown-up work is an excellent example of the privileges that come with responsibility. This is an excellent story for helping children understand how maple syrup is made.
The family members are dressed in modern clothes, but their practice is an old one, as is their equipment. Haas' writing is excellent, and Smith's evocative watercolor paintings vividly render the crisp outdoor cold, which contrasts with the steamy indoor warmth in the boiling shed. Nora's generosity toward the horses is reminiscent of biblical admonitions for people to care for their animals that serve them (Deuteronomy 25:4; Proverbs 12:10). The relational bond between grandparents and grandchild is nearly tangible, and Nora's participation in this exciting grown-up work is an excellent example of the privileges that come with responsibility. This is an excellent story for helping children understand how maple syrup is made.
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