13 Children's Books About Food (PHOTOS)

For parents and children, the subjects of what, when, and how much to eat are vexing, endlessly debatable, and, I think, a source of skepticism that can often stretch lifetimes. Remembering the hours we have probably logged projecting false confidence that our children will actually like what we are foisting, and overlook it's textural challenges, and olfactory red flags, the fact that it's not cake - really, they would be foolish to completely trust us about anything ever again.

How food arrives in our vicinity can seem so magnificently convenient sometimes, it's no wonder when we fail to acknowledge its improbable variations. Consider a pomegranate. Ostrich eggs. Squid! Look at an ear of corn for heaven's sake: imagine happening on that at the top of a seven foot stalk without knowing better.

Or imagine a carrot so massive it needs to be harvested in a wheelbarrow. Or a monster made entirely out of leftover lima beans buried in your backyard. Imagine donuts "laced with kiwi jam, and served inside an open clam!" Imagine gingerbread communities coming to life when you sleep, and fleeing sausages and flying pies, and hard bitten cookie-detectives in the bottom of that jar. Imagine red lemons. Now try imagining that the nutritional content of any food is hopefully the least interesting thing about it.

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"Hubert the Pudge" by Henrik Drescher

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Isn't it funny how we use the same word to describe those funny big birds and a McNugget? Hard to know the right time to start talking to your kids about that pork chop, that hamburger, and maybe this isn't where you'd start. But the call to conscience is pretty clarion here, and also funny, and gracious: even the brutish Farmer Jake ends up falling in love and starting a Tofu company. Certainly there are cringes along the way, but Drescher, as usual, takes a little discomfort and makes it sound important enough to follow all the way to the end. If nothing else, this story offers the satisfaction of an artist with finally enough stature to defy his editors' better, safer judgment. One of a kind.

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Isn't it funny how we use the same word to describe those funny big birds and a McNugget? Hard to know the right time to start talking to your kids about that pork chop, that hamburger, and maybe this isn't where you'd start. But the call to conscience is pretty clarion here, and also funny, and gracious: even the brutish Farmer Jake ends up falling in love and starting a Tofu company. Certainly there are cringes along the way, but Drescher, as usual, takes a little discomfort and makes it sound important enough to follow all the way to the end. If nothing else, this story offers the satisfaction of an artist with finally enough stature to defy his editors' better, safer judgment. One of a kind.

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This Children's Book

Rank #2  |  Average: 4

Leave it for the kids Even as an adult, I want to read this!

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Comments

[Myrrhis]

09:39 AM on 03/22/2011

"Bread and Jam for Francis", "In the Night Kitchen" and some of the other titles ppl have posted - "Stone Soup", "Green Eggs and Ham"

[Ava Thunder]

05:58 PM on 03/11/2011

I liked the book "Peanut Butter and Jelly is My Favorite Thing to Eat" Even though I hate peanut butter lol.

[TheBaffler]

01:41 AM on 03/11/2011

The lima bean is the most disgusting thing man has ever designated as a food. The foulness of its flavor is unmatched.

[Kristin Talbott]

06:20 PM on 03/10/2011

I'm sorry, but without "How to Eat Fried Worms," this list is hopelessly incomplete.

[DavidMG]

03:53 PM on 03/15/2011

Also missing is "The ABC's of Fruits & Vegetables and Beyond."- Especially with Michelle's vegetable and fruit initiative.

[athena 88]

05:10 PM on 03/10/2011

I had The Carrot Seed in my childhood bookshelf, but I had completely forgotten about it until now. One of my favorite children's books that you forgot is Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. It got a lot of press a little while back when they made a movie version, but the book is the best!

For more great children's books, check out this list:

http://www.best5everything.com/best5ListPages/childrensbooks48645.php

[argh38]

04:48 PM on 03/10/2011

Strega Nona

[naschkatze]

03:47 PM on 03/10/2011

Food is not in the title, but I love all the meals and snacks mentioned in Sydney Taylor's All-of-a-Kind Family about a Jewish family on the lower East Side at the turn of the last century. They rival the adult Hemingway books which make me want to go out and eat things like a canned bean sandwich on white bread with a thick slice of raw onion.

[SonyaInTx]

03:22 PM on 03/10/2011

Lima beans are pretty scary to me.......

[Woods-shade]

02:27 PM on 03/10/2011

"Stone Soup"? my favorite as a kid....

[Ava Thunder]

05:59 PM on 03/11/2011

classic!

[llisa]

02:20 PM on 03/10/2011

"The Little Red Hen" is a classic story.

"The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza"--not so much.

[Jay Bushara]

02:43 PM on 03/10/2011

No, not a classic. Which is exactly why it makes this list. With the exception of the Carrot Seed here, all of these books could benefit from a second look.

[Woods-shade]

02:52 PM on 03/10/2011

Perfect. And it was a good was to gently teach a lesson.
Like 'The Ant and The Grasshopper', only I guess stocking food away for winter doesn't quite count in this thread. : )

[FPhoebe]

01:36 PM on 03/10/2011

No Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs?!

[JoyfulExit]

01:05 PM on 03/10/2011

One of our favorites is Pete's A Pizza by William Steig.

[Mahi Joe]

12:54 PM on 03/10/2011

Hey! What about Homer and his infamous doughnut machine?

[Read AloudDad]

12:37 PM on 03/10/2011

Wow, great and original food-related picture book suggestions!

From this list, I only read The Carrot Seed.

Thanks for the tips!

Read Aloud Dad

www.ReadAloudDad.com

[Appalachian Outi]

11:25 AM on 03/10/2011

A book that I found and really liked was "Eat Your Way Around the World" by Jamie Aramini.
It is a fun cookbook for kids learning about other cultures. You gotta learn about food if you are going to learn about people. We all eat!

[Woods-shade]

02:29 PM on 03/10/2011

Agree. Fanned!