Mary's First Thanksgiving: An Inspirational Story of Gratefulness

About Mary's First Thanksgiving:

Most days, Mary loves her new home in America. But now it’s Thanksgiving time, and her family has little food. Mary begins to wish she could go back to Ireland. Life isn’t fair. Even the gift of a pumpkin pie from a kind neighbor doesn’t cheer her.

So, Father tells Mary a story of how the Pilgrims struggled when they first came to America. The seeds they brought with them wouldn’t grow. Native Americans showed the new settlers how to make the soil grow crops. That instruction helped, but the Pilgrims still faced hardships. There were times when they had barely enough food. But five kernels of corn helped the Pilgrims survive and made their faith stronger.
Will the legend of the five kernels help grow a new faith in Mary too?

About Author Kathy-jo Wargin:

Author Kathy-jo Wargin has earned national acclaim through award-winning children's classics such as Michigan's official state book, The Legend of Sleeping Bear, Children's Choice Award winner The Legend of the Loon, The Edmund Fitzgerald: Song of the Bell, and many others. Kathy-jo enjoys writing about nature and its effect on all our lives, and is a frequent guest speaker throughout the country. She is also a faculty member of the Bear River Writers Workshop, sponsored by the University of Michigan. She lives in Petoskey, Michigan.

About Illustrator Robert Papp:

Because Robert Papp's childhood drawings of his favorite superheros were such a pleasure, it was only natural that he would wind up an illustrator. Nowadays, his award-winning artwork appears on book covers and in magazines instead of on the refrigerator. He has produced hundreds of cover illustrations for major publishers across the United States. Robert lives in historic Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

My thoughts:

With it's bounty of beautiful life-like pictures that are truly a feast for the eyes, and a text rich with teaching points about being grateful with even the smallest of blessings, Mary's First Thanksgiving is a book you'll want to pull off the shelf time and again no matter the season. As many these days suffer in some way with our uncertain economy, this book is a powerful reminder to each of us that God's provision can come to us in many ways, both big and small - and sometimes in ways we least expect it.