School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 4-Amanda and her extended family spend every Thanksgiving at her grandmother's house and love Bubbe's wonderful Jewish and American foods. Even more, Amanda loves the stories, the togetherness, and especially the wishes that she and her cousins get to make with Bubbe when there's nothing left of the turkey but the wishbone. After she dies, the family attempts to re-create the traditional dishes, but, because they try to cook everything at once, they lose electrical power before the meal is finished. Kindly neighbors come to their rescue, and the dinner is saved. Amanda even makes a wish with her neighbor, Mrs. Yee, who offers to serve as a surrogate grandmother, and Bubbe's tradition continues. Rosen's story is filled with the warmth of family togetherness and the comfort of holiday traditions. Thompson's realistic, acrylic paintings complement the story beautifully, focusing on the characters' relationships. Small inserts hone in on smaller details that elucidate specific aspects of the text, and the artist is particularly adept at portraying facial expressions and physical features. A good choice for a holiday read-aloud that is sure to prompt discussions of listeners' own Thanksgiving traditions.-Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan, LaSalle Academy, Providence, RI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Amanda and her family have always celebrated Thanksgiving with her grandmother, Bubbe: "Even more than Chanukah or Passover... Thanksgiving had always been Bubbe's special holiday." Bubbe begins preparing the extravagant meal weeks in advance, and all year long saves wishbones so there are enough for each of the grandchildren. When Bubbe dies, Amanda can't imagine how she'll ever stop missing her. Fortunately, Amanda's mother finds a way to recreate the annual feast in Bubbe's honorÄright down to the wishbone. Although the narrative gets off to a strong start, the transition that relates Bubbe's death is jarring ("And so for the first Thanksgiving without Bubbe... "), and soon thereafter takes on the feel of a memoir with one too many anecdotes. Thompson's (O Jerusalem) paintings are strongest when focused on Amanda and her grandmother; the rest are surprisingly static. Ages 6-up. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
