Here’s an interesting, informative, and entertaining book for youngsters who relish a world outside the box. John Cox and Carolyn Fisher‘s inherently ordinary story recipe of a father and daughter planting potatoes unfolds with imagination and unconventional creativity, with depth, complexity, and richness subtly blended to the simply drawn characters and their lives. Eye-catching potato skin fonts, hand printed letters of various sizes, colors and textures meandering in all directions, and characters with oversized, expressive faces are zesty ingredients that help make Two Old Potatoes and Me a tasty spud recipe for fun and surreptitious edification.
Spudopsis
A young girl of indeterminate age finds two old, sprouting potatoes at her dad’s house. Dad witnesses the spud throwaway and thinks they can grow new potatoes with the trashed sprouters. Daughter and father get instructions from Grandpa and commence their potato adventure. They prepare the soil carefully, then after cutting the spuds into pieces plant and water them gently. Over the ensuing weeks the familial pair tend to the growing plants and protect them from the ominous potato beetles.
In August when the potato leaves begin to turn brown, Dad reassures his daughter that the potatoes are not dead but still growing underground. They continue to care for the plants. The young narrator tells Dad about her periwinkle painted bedroom at her mom’s house; he listens with interest. After this September conversation they walk to their garden to enthusiastically harvest the potatoes. They marvel at the potato bounty overflowing the buckets and the spudriffic variety of shapes and sizes. Some of the potatoes even appear to have funny faces. Later father and daughter share some delicious mashed potatoes, delighting in knowing they are home grown.
Sundry Thoughts and Observations
I wasn’t too enthralled with this book after the first reading, but like a beard it kind of grew on me. The youngsters with whom I shared it liked the illustrations and the creative and unusual use of fonts. None of the youngsters with whom I read this book, black or white, commented on the representation of the characters as black, an incidental detail not really important to the story. I found their lack of reaction to the characters’ ethnic depiction rather interesting and refreshing.
After my first reading I concluded that the use of shaped, multidirectional text was an annoying gimmick. Yet the young readers seemed to enjoy this technique, and that’s what matters. A careful reading was necessary to catch all the text, as was an occasional rereading. This is also a good thing.
I like that the theme of divorce and shared custody is casually weaved into the story in a matter of fact manner with no melodrama or angst. All the characters cope well with the situation without bitterness, hostility or grudges. The young girl is obviously in a loving relationship with both parents and the extended family.
Midway through the book I noticed that the verb tenses abruptly change from past to present tense. This seems odd since the first part of the story is not told in flashback, and I can come up with no explanation for it.
At the end of the book I enjoyed seeing so many of the harvested potatoes shaped like faces. One resembles Abe Lincoln and another looks like Mr. Magoo. In fact, Two Old Potatoes could be used to secretly administer the Rorschach test.
At the end of the book is a recipe for mashed potatoes. What better ending can a book have?
I can’t say that this is my favorite children’s book, but it is appealing on many levels and, after all, its central focus is the nurturing of the potato. The language is reasonable and the sentence lengths are short. Repetition is used skillfully to reinforce some words and develop the story. If you see this one at your local library, pick it up. I don’t think you’ll be sorry.
Vital Stats
40 pages
4-8 Reading Level ages
11.5 by 8.7 by .3 inches in dimension
471 words
49 sentences
36 words per ounce
28 times potato(es) appears in the story
...and more
Edgar Potato
Mr. Potato Head’s Big Night Out
Mr. Potato Head Unplugged
Brave Potatoes
Minnie and Moo and the Potato From Planet X
Potato
Jamie O'Rourke and the Big Potato
Two Old Potatoes
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