The Blue Table

by Chris Raschka (Author) Chris Raschka (Illustrator)

The Blue Table
Reading Level: K − 1st Grade

It's time to celebrate family, community, generosity, and giving!

Two-time Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka's stunning picture book is the perfect pick to share whenever family and friends gather together to celebrate and give thanks, no matter the occasion.

Spend the day around the heart of a home: the blue table. A shopping list is written, food is prepared, and the table is set. Guests arrive, thanks are given, and a meal is shared. What then? It's time to pitch in and clean up, of course! Limited text, bright colors, and stunning collage illustrations make

The Blue Table ideal for the youngest reader and for storytime sharing. In just thirty-two pages, two-time Caldecott Medalist and New York Times-bestselling picture book creator Chris Raschka captures the very essence of community--and gratitude.

Select format:
Hardcover
$17.99

School Library Journal

PreS-K--A blue table is the focal point of this brightly colored picture book that takes the food icons of Thanksgiving--pie, turkey, potatoes, corn--and transcends them for a simple story of gathering and gratitude. First one family comes together, planning and organizing, and then a second family joins in to share a lovely meal. The simplicity is deliberate; there is no dialogue, only two dozen words, and there are no faces of the people planning or participating in the meal. Only the hands of the people are shown, allowing readers to see that the characters are of different races. The bright watercolor pictures will offer opportunities to engage young readers in discussions about what the pictures mean and what they might enjoy for a shared meal. VERDICT A pleasant story, with an indelible blue table as its hearth, and most collections will want to add it to their shelves.--Debbie Tanner, S D Spady Montessori Elem., FL

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Publishers Weekly

Starred Review

Spare text and images center the titular cerulean table, around which a small family--and later, a second--gathers to share meals and gratitude. Instead of showing human figures, Caldecott Medalist Raschka showcases tabletop objects and dishes from a bird's-eye view, which appear and disappear as the pages turn. In colorful illustrations crafted from watercolor and cut-paper collage, a glass of milk first signifies "a child." Across the gutter, the addition of a coffee cup and saucer to the surface indicates another arrival--"a parent." And a page turn later, "another parent" joins, the table now host to a second coffee cup, a plate of cinnamon rolls, and activities befitting a comfortable breakfast (a newspaper, a book, crayons and paper). "Good things/ from the garden,// the store,/ and the farm" are assembled next, among them veggies and a turkey, and a leaf is added to the blue table in preparation for "one more family." Images include hands and forearms in a variety of skin tones as all gather, "thankful," for a many-coursed meal. A gentle picture book that celebrates the joy to be found in both everyday routines and holiday abundance. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)

Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"A blue table symbolizes and facilitates the connections among family members and between friends. . . . [Raschka's] paintings reflect the action and objects described while adding nuance and detail. . . . A charming and cozy celebration of the places and routines that anchor and connect us." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780062937766
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Greenwillow Books
Publication date
October 20, 2020
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV051000 - Juvenile Fiction | Imagination & Play
JUV013000 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | General
JUV017060 - Juvenile Fiction | Holidays & Celebrations | Thanksgiving
Library of Congress categories
-

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