Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation (Time-Traveling Twins) [Hardcover]

Diane Stanley (Author), Holly Berry (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up | Series: Time-Traveling Twins

Wouldn't it be great to be part of that famous Thanksgiving feast at Plymouth Plantation back in 1621?

Then join the Time-Traveling Twins as they sit down to an enormous FOUR-DAY feast, complete with puddings, pompions, pottages, and, of course, turkeys. Meet Squanto and the other Native Americans. Help with the harvest. Find out what it was like to be a Pilgrim.

Once again, historian Diane Stanley's fun and impeccably researched text is brought to life by Holly Berry's accessible illustrations. Word balloons, engaging characters, and all sorts of wonderful details about the beginning of this American tradition await the lucky adventurer who journeys back with the Time-Traveling Twins.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 4–In this well-researched, time-travel adventure, Grandma, twins Liz and Lenny, and Moose the dog journey back to 1621 and a three-day feast with the settlers at Plymouth Plantation. In conjunction with her fast-paced and informative text, Stanley uses dialogue bubbles to give readers all sorts of interesting, comical, and possibly shocking tidbits–for example, Colonial kids drank beer, which was actually healthier than the water. This story debunks popular myths about the Pilgrims and the Thanksgiving holiday while whetting young readers' appetites for more information about life at this time. Complementing the book's conversational flavor, Berry's cartoon illustrations are bright and appealing. Clever endpapers contrast the dishes served "Then" and "Now," from "boiled eels" to "jellied cranberry sauce." An author's note provides more information about the holiday.–Julie Roach, Malden Public Library, MA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

K-Gr. 3. In the latest Time-Traveling Twins book, Liz and Lenny accompany their grandmother to Plymouth Plantation in 1621. They live in a small, crowded house; do chores; work in the fields; attend worship services, of course; and sit down to a feast with the colonists and Wampanoag. When Liz refers to it as "the first Thanksgiving," she is quickly corrected by a Plymouth boy, who explains that it's just a harvest festival like the ones back in England. This exchange, along with Grandmother's explanation of what the settlement's first "true Day of Thanksgiving" entailed, show Stanley's fine approach. The traditional version, often seen at school pageants, seems stale and dull compared with this fresh, engaging presentation of what life in Plymouth was and was not. An author's note explains how the feast became popularly known as "the first Thanksgiving" and why that label is inaccurate. Bustling with activity, warmed with color, and full of period details, Berry's attractive illustrations light up the pages of this appealing and engaging volume. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 48 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (August 17, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060270691
• ISBN-13: 978-0060270698
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 10.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,029,077 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Diane Stanley is the author and illustrator of more than fifty books for children, noted especially for her series of picture book biographies. SHAKA: KING OF THE ZULUS was named a New York Times Best Illustrated Book; LEONARDO DA VINCI received the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction from the National Council for Teachers of English. Ten of her books have been honored as "Notable Books" by the American Library Association and she has twice received both the Boston Globe/Hornbook Award and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators' Golden Kite Award. She is the recipient of the Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Award for Nonfiction for the body of her work.

She lives in Santa Fe, NM. Visit her website at dianestanley.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good at telling how if felt to be there at the first Thanksgiving, October 17, 2005

By 

mamareadssomuch "mamareadssomuch" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation (Time-Traveling Twins) (Hardcover)

This is a nicely illustrated history lesson in simple story format. Two kids time-travel with their grandmother to Plymouth Plantation and while there, see and experience how it felt at the time. Pages are chock full of extra tidbits.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clearing Up Misconceptions About the "First Thanksgiving", November 1, 2010

By 

tvtv3 "tvtv3" (Sorento, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation (Time-Traveling Twins) (Hardcover)

THANKSGIVING ON PLYMOUTH PLANTATION is the third in the series of "time traveling twins" books by Diane Stanley. Liz and Lenny love visiting their grandmother. Their grandmother is a very special lady with a very special hat. When she puts it on, she can travel backwards in time and be a part of history. When Liz and Lenny come to visit for Thanksgiving, they decide to travel back in time to 1621 to the "first" Thanksgiving at Plymouth, Massachusetts. They meet one of their ancestors who traveled to America aboard the Mayflower and clear up many of the misconceptions they had about the "first" Thanksgiving (including that it wasn't the first and it really wasn't a Thanksgiving).

The story is easy to follow and in addition to the main "story" there is a subplot that's followed by reading the speech-bubbles of the characters. The book is chock-full of all kinds of information about those first church planters who lived at Plymouth. Children will be amazed at all of the information, some of which they will find particularly surprising. For instance, everyone, including children drank beer at Plymouth because it was healthier than the water. Holly Berry's illustrations are a welcome accompaniment to the playful story and text. Lastly, the beginning and the end of the book has illustrations of a Thanksgiving feast from "then" (1621) and "now". By the time kids finish reading this text, they will be wanting to clean the turkey with pudding, sallet herbs, and pompion pie off of their trenchers (translated: turkey with stuffing, vegetables, and pumpkin pie off their plates).