Review by Booklist Review
This two-part picture book begins with three small farms: one grows produce outdoors, another cultivates mushrooms indoors, the dairy makes cheese. As the afternoon draws to a close, each farmer and his workers prepare for the next day. Morning finds the farmers setting up their tents and tables at the farmers' market. Among their first customers is Amy, a cook buying ingredients for the dish she will serve that evening at the café. Late in the day, the farmers pack up and it's time for Amy's special Market Pie. Enhancing the book's appeal, children appear in most of the illustrations, helping out at their families' farms and enjoying each other's company in town. The text flows well, with dialogue carrying some of the farming and cheese-making information. Created with gouache, acrylic, and pencil, the artwork has an inviting look. Kids familiar with their local outdoor markets will enjoy making the connection between their experience and the farms supplying those vegetables and cheese stands. This appealing picture book offers a light narrative and a look behind the scenes.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Karas (A Poem in Your Pocket) hints at the structure of this picture book through its title: the first half follows the activity at three farms as vegetables are harvested, cheese is made, and mushrooms are grown, while the second half is set at a busy neighborhood market. Beyond providing intriguing details about farming-vegetables "get washed right away to take out the field's heat," and mushrooms are grown on hanging plastic bags "filled with a mixture of hay, sawdust, and water" that mimic tree trunks-Karas puts a strong emphasis on long hours and hard work, including late-night cleanup at the Amazing Cheese Dairy Farm and early morning setup at the market. Working in a mixture of gouache, acrylic, and pencil, Karas creates inviting and carefully detailed scenes that evoke a tight-knit community, from the friendly interactions at the market to the children learning the ropes at each farm, as the process of training a new generation of growers and artisans gets underway. Ages 5-9. Agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-A great behind-the-scenes look at what happens before, during, and after a farmer's market. The first half of the book shows farmers and their children getting ready for the next day's market, picking and crating vegetables, making cheese, and gathering mushrooms. The second half shows the market set up, customers buying comestibles, and, finally, everyone cleaning up at the end of the day. An author's note at the back emphasizes the importance of timing for farmers and that farming is no easy job. Karas's signature cartoonish gouache, acrylic, and pencil illustrations wonderfully capture the industrious bustle and hard work of the farmers. VERDICT A wonderfully timely story to read before visiting a farmer's market or to educate young ones about provenance of local food.-Yelena Alekseyeva-Popova, formerly at Chappaqua Library, NY © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Karas divides his entertaining and enlightening behind-the-scenes story of a farmers market into two sections. The first, On the Farm, places a sunny focus on the daily grind that keeps three types of farms running -- vegetable, dairy (specifically cheese), mushroom -- providing a glimpse into their operations. At each one, the text emphasizes the importance of timing and management of a well-trained team of workers. Children, too, help in small ways, eager to be part of the community. The farmers are seemingly successful -- and happy -- but also, realistically, exhausted: that their days end late into the night is repeated three times. The books second section, At the Market, brings the farmers together early the next morning, where the community-at-large benefits from their hard work. A chef thoughtfully selects produce and cheese as she visits with each vendor, then celebrates the end of market day with a farm-to-table meal shared by all. Gouache, acrylic, and pencil illustrations are rich with the colors of a bountiful harvest, and a cheerful camaraderie shines throughout. An authors note rounds out the narrative with a few more agricultural facts. pamela yosca (c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
What goes on behind the scenes at a farmers market? In two sections, Karas describes the day-before work of a truck farmer, a cheese maker, and a mushroom grower, then the action on the day itself, including the setup, the sales, and the upcoming dinner at the Busy Bee Cafe. A simple and upbeat text is accompanied by illustrations that fill out a narrative spiced with some gentle, realistic humor. A new employee thinks she's finished her work when she's checked off all the assigned tasks at the Amazing Cheese Dairy Farm, but she still has to mop the floor; the last job for the mushroom grower is to change a tire on his truck. Ranging from vignettes to double-page spreads, these pencil, gouache, and acrylic images show diverse groups of farm workers, vendors, and customers, united in their enjoyment of both their work and the Sunday-morning market, which even includes entertainment. The final activity, of course, is cleaning up. These pictures include sufficient detail to warrant careful inspection. Readers will see what the cafe owner has made with her cheese, chard, leeks, mushrooms, and eggs on the very last page, where a concluding author's note points up the hard work that results in the bounty displayed at the market and reminds young marketgoers to thank their farmers. Simple but delectable. (Informational picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
