I LOVE Blueberries by Shannon Anderson and Jaclyn Sinquett

I LOVE Blueberries 

by Shannon Anderson 

Illustrated by Jaclyn Sinquett

Published April, 2025

Feeding Minds Press

32 Pages

Hardcover 

Informative Fiction

Summary From Publisher

Berry-loving Jolie is back, and this time she has a new friend! Margot has just moved to town and misses Maine — especially the blueberries. Determined to help, Jolie turns to their teacher to learn how hydroponics helps the strawberries in their classroom grow. Unfortunately, it’s a costly system and there’s no money left from the grant that helped the class start their indoor strawberry patch. Undeterred, Jolie, Margot, and their diverse group of classmates brainstorm ways to get the equipment they need, and they come up with just the thing: a Blueberry Bash!

The students invite the local community to a show-and-tell — featuring homemade decorations (blue, of course), blueberry muffins, and even a blueberry-themed poem! — where they explain their gardening goals, and inspire the community to come together and help the class achieve their berry-growing dreams.

Sinquett’s illustrations of Jolie’s exuberant, scrapbook-style journal and Margot’s sketchbook bring Anderson’s delightful tale to life, and will keep kids engaged as they learn all about the wonders of hydroponics and indoor gardening, and the many health benefits of blueberries.

My Thoughts

Maine is known for its blueberries so I was drawn to this book immediately. I liked how the characters worked together to solve the problem and kept track of things using their notebook. The notebook images added a lot to the book and show readers how to use writing in a real-world way. Facts are woven in naturally, but the story still shines through. I can see readers wanting to use hydroponics in their  classrooms or homes after reading I LOVE Blueberries. 

Back matter includes nutritional facts about blueberries and how to start using hydroponics. 

In my opinion, this book could be used K-5, but 2-5 would likely benefit the most. 

Image from Amazon.com

About the Author: Shannon Anderson is an award-winning children's book author, professor, TEDx speaker, frequent keynote presenter, and certified brain coach. She taught for 25 years, from first grade through college level and was named one of the 10 teachers who "awed and inspired" the Today Show in 2019. Shannon loves doing author visits, providing Professional Development for teachers, mentoring aspiring writers, and speaking at events. Her book I LOVE Strawberries! was named the top rated 2022 picture book by Good Housekeeping magazine and the national book of the year by the Farm Bureau Foundation. Learn more at shannonisteaching.com.

About the Illustrator: Jaclyn Sinquett grew up playing in her dad's garden, feeding worms to box turtles, and tossing french fries to seagulls at the Jersey shore. She now spends her time avoiding sunburn at the beach with her daughter, catching up on a certain great baking show, and illustrating books for children. She lives in Brick, NJ. See more of her work at jaclynsinquett.com.

About the Publisher: Feeding Minds Press is a project of the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. The mission of the Foundation is to build awareness and understanding of agriculture through education. The goal of Feeding Minds Press is to publish accurate and engaging books about agriculture that connect readers to where their food comes from and who grows it. Learn more at feedingmindspress.com.



Praise for I LOVE Strawberries!

“A multi-layered story about a resourceful girl who is determined to grow strawberries received the highest scores from parents and kids of all the books tested. A series of handwritten diary entries, along with a bit of regular text, chronicle (often with humor) the girl’s efforts to convince her parents that she’s mature and hard-working enough to raise berries. ‘This book explores themes of responsibility, passion and entrepreneurship while explaining the process of growing one's own food and the lifecycle of a plant,’ says judge Sandhya Nankani, founder of The Story Seeds Podcast.”
—Good Housekeeping, 2022 Best Kids’ Books Awards

Awards and Honors

2023 American Farm Bureau Foundation’s Agriculture Book of the Year
2023 Benjamin Franklin GOLD Award for Picture Book
2023 Jr Master Gardener Program’s Growing Good Kids Book Award
2023 Hindi's Libraries’ Best Females of Fiction Award
2023 Penelope's Prize Children's Book Award Judge's Selection
2023 Indiana Farm Bureau’s Book of the Year
2023 Virginia Ag in the Classroom’s Book of the Year
2022 Good Housekeeping’s Best Kids Books
2022 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year BRONZE Award

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? November 7, 2016

Please visit the amazing blogs: Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers who host this terrific meme each week.

Click on the covers to learn more about each book.

An important story to share with children to build 

empathy and spark their desire to help others.

Just beautiful! Deborah Freeman is amazing! 

Share this with all your shy little ones. 

There is so much to read and examine in this 160 page biography of E.B.White. A must-have for your biography collection. 

What are you reading friends? 

It's Monday, What Are You Reading?-October 17, 2016

A couple more day left to enter to win a Pug Meets Pig gift pack ! 

Please visit the amazing blogs: Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers who host this terrific meme each week.

Click on the covers to learn more about each book.

Last week I reviewed A Bike Like Sergio's by this author/illustrator team. This book would be excellent to share with elementary students and offers many opportunities for discussion about fairness, wants and needs.

Visit tomorrow to hear more about this sweet picture book!

Currently Reading

Really enjoying this novel in verse.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading?-February 9, 2015

Please visit the amazing blogs: Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers who host this terrific meme each week.

Here are the two books I read this week. Click on the covers to learn more about them.

The picture book adaptation of Fatty Legs. Nice story of determination and 

the power of reading. Nice read aloud for grades 1-4.

Really loved this new one by Jennifer Richard Jacobson. 

A very touching story. Great for grades 4-8. Review to come.

Currently Reading

I LOVE anything by Lisa Graff so I was thrilled to see a new title. I am only a couple of chapters in, but this story is very intriguing so far. Thank you to my friend Jason Lewis for lending it to me. 

What Are You Reading Friends?

Nonfiction Wednesday, January 28, 2015-Earmuffs for Everyone How Chester Greenwood Became Known as the Inventor of the Earmuffs

My Friend Alyson Beecher at Kid Lit Frenzy hosts a weekly link up to share Nonfiction Picture Books. Please visit her amazing website.

Earmuffs for Everyone How Chester Greenwood Became Known as the Inventor of the Earmuffs

by Meghan McCarthy

Published 2015 by Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books

48 Pages 

Nonfiction Picture Book

Review copy obtained from public library

Goodreads Summary

As a young boy, Chester Greenwood went from having cold ears to becoming a great inventor in this nonfiction picture book from the acclaimed author-illustrator of Pop! and Daredevil.

When your ears are cold, you can wear earmuffs, but that wasn't true for Chester Greenwood back in 1873. Earmuffs didn't exist yet! But during yet another long and cold Maine winter, Chester decided to do something about his freezing ears, and he designed the first pair of ear protectors (a.k.a. earmuffs) out of wire, beaver fur, and cloth. He received a patent for his design by the time he was nineteen, and within a decade the Chester Greenwood & Company factory was producing and shipping Champion Ear Protectors worldwide!

But that was just the beginning of Chester's career as a successful businessman and prolific inventor. In this fun and fact-filled picture book you can find out all about his other clever creations. The Smithsonian has declared Chester Greenwood one of America's most outstanding inventors. And if you're ever in Maine on December 21, be sure to don a pair of earmuffs and celebrate Chester Greenwood day!

My Thoughts

I was thrilled to see the story of Chester Greenwood in a picture book. Being from Maine, it always excites me when a Mainer is featured in a book. Even more exciting, I attended college in Farmington, Maine, the birthplace of Chester Greenwood. It is true that the town celebrates Chester Greenwood Day every year. However the actual Chester Greenwood Day is December 21 and the parade is always on the first Saturday of the month.

I always thought that Greenwood actually invented earmuffs. Well Meghan McCarthy has done her research and it turns out that he did not actually invent earmuffs, but improved them. Before his patented version, earmuffs did not fit snugly over the ears. I also learned that Thomas Edison did not actually invent the light bulb, but improved it to last longer. Who knew?

I like how McCarthy combined her adorable big-eyed cartoonish characters with factual information and recreations of original documents. Readers will learn about invention patents and a bit about Greenwood himself. The story and the author's note explain how difficult it was to sift through what was true and what was not true about Greenwood. I would recommend this book as part of a classroom library biographies. It would make a good read aloud for grades 2-5. 

How Stuff Works has a nice, quick video about Chester and his ear protectors. 

Here are a few other books about kid inventors:

  

  

Please visit Meghan McCarthy's website to learn more about her and her books. 

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday-October 8, 2014

My Friend Alyson Beecher at Kid Lit Frenzy hosts a weekly link up to share Nonfiction Picture Books. Please visit her amazing website. 

Agate: What Good is a Moose? 
by Joy Morgan Dey
Illustrated by 
Nikki Johnson
Published 2007 by Lake Superior Post Cities Inc. 
Picture Book
32 Pages
Obtained from public library

Summary from Goodreads 
Agate is a moose with low self-esteem. He feels inadequate and plain, like an ugly brown rock, especially when he compares himself to his beautiful friends who are named after birthstones. These friend help Agate to see that just like his namesake, true beauty lies within. Stunning original watercolors, a witty, positive message about self image plus bonus pages with birthstone and agate facts. Perfect for reading aloud.

My Thoughts

Although this book is categorized as fiction, I am sharing it here on Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday because it is filled with facts about the animals. 

I like how each animal is named after a birthstone and beautifully painted using the respective watercolors. The message is not new, but one that bears repeating with children: everyone is unique and should be valued for their own talents and gifts. The author weaves in facts that work very naturally with the story. She does not shy away from using more complicated vocabulary, within the rhyming, poetic text, such as disjointed, scarcely, malcontented and self-conscious making this book a perfect read aloud for ages 5-10. Along with enjoying the story, there are many curricular connections that can be made.

Use this book...

*as part of a poetry unit. 

*as a read aloud during a unit about animals.

*early in the year to build community-everyone is unique. 

*as a mentor text for context clues. 

*as a mentor text for facts vs. opinions. 

*as a mentor text for summarizing-somebody, wanted, but, so, then.