Sugaring Time [Hardcover]

Kathryn Lasky (Author), Christopher G. Knight (Photographer)

Book Description

"In lyrical prose and black-and-white photographs, Lasky's book depicts the Lacey family of Vermont making maple syrup . . . A rare kind of nonfiction, informative yet as easily read as fiction." (School Library Journal) "Some of the pictures will take your breath away."--The New York Times Book Review. Newbery Honor Book; ALA Notable Children's Book; the Horn Book Fanfare List.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers (March 1, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0027516806
• ISBN-13: 978-0027516807
• Product Dimensions: 0.2 x 10.2 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,280,096 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Hi Readers! Thanks for coming by my author page. I've written all sorts of books - from fantasy about animals to books about science. One of my favorite animal fantasy series, Guardians of Ga'Hoole, is a major motion picture. I liked writing about Ga'Hoole so much that I decided to revisit that world in a new series, Wolves of the Beyond. Visit my website, www.kathrynlasky.com to see a slide show about the real wolves I researched for the series and for the latest update on the Guardians of Ga'Hoole movie. All my best, Kathryn

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars informative and entrancing, the best kind of book, August 19, 2005

By 

waldorf_curric - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Sugaring Time (Paperback)

This book is eminently suitable to an upper-elementary classroom studying the New England region or the economy of Vermont. Step by step, with one chapter devoted to each part of the maple syrup-making process, the black and white photography and clear text leads you through a wintery world of magic. I sat down and read this book cover to cover and then immediately read it all over again, not wanting to leave the peaceful world of the sugarbush (a grove of maple trees). The crisp and snowy wonderland setting does not mean that sugaring is easy, however; it is intensely hard work spread out over a four week time period. Maple syrup is harvested in March, in that break between coldest winter and earliest spring, when the days are above freezing and brightly lit but the nights are still cold. The direct, strengthening light of the sun warming the trees after the vernal equinox gets their sap flowing and it is from this sap that the syrup is made. That part I knew but everything else about this book revealed a world that was new to me, from the exact temperature sap becomes syrup and what happens if you hit too high or too low, how long the sap will last before it spoils, how the syrup is tested, the precise density it must be to store properly, even how old you have to be before your parents let you Really Help (which is, of course, the part most interesting to small children). This is a world where everyone travels by ski or by sled, which is amazing to me; I can't imagine that depth of winter. The text is as warm and delicious as maple syrup itself: "The sparkling sap, clear and bright, runs like streams of Christmas tinsle. They each take a lick and wonder how so much crystal sweetness can come from a gnarled tree older than all their grandparents put together." Close-up pictures of all steps of the process as well as the exact equipment used makes this book as informative as it is enjoyable. A fascinating look at an age-old process, this book is a must-read for any unit on winter, trees, and the magic of nature.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Charming book about making maple syrup, March 24, 2009

By 

Sue Stuever Battel (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sugaring Time (Paperback)

I'm a homeschooling mom and our family makes maple syrup in Michigan. I enjoy finding accurate children's books about the sugaring experience. This is a charming book that tells one family's story of making maple syrup in their sugar bush. The photos are slightly dated, but it is a classic story. I most appreciate that it demonstrates the tight family bonds that sugarmakers can develop working together.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice children's book about making maple syrup, February 23, 2009

By 

HeatherHH - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sugaring Time Library Book Grade 5: Harcourt School Publishers Treasury of Literature (Treasury of Literature 95y047) (Paperback)

A Newbery Honor book from 1984, this book is framed within a family farm type setting. The process of making maple syrup if thoroughly covered, from the weather conditions leading up to sugaring time all the way to how the maple syrup is graded. I'm not sure how many still use horses or whether there is more technical equipment in use in the family farm setting, but this is definitely a good description of the basic process. Throughout the story, you are following the family, so you have references like "Angie is now tall enough to reach up and put the hats on the buckets to keep out the rain and snow." This makes the book more interesting than a more straightforward just-the-facts description. Every 2-page spread also has at least 1 black-and-white photograph illustrating the text and giving a real feel for the setting.

I read this book aloud to my older two children, ages 7 and 5 1/2. While it's not a "fun" book they ask for again and again, they did enjoy hearing it and did learn from it. This book is certainly not a "must read," but it's a nice elective science book for children in elementary school on up.