fresita's Full Review: Monique Z. Stephens - Spring for Strawberry Shortc...
In "Spring for Strawberry Shortcake," the friends from Strawberryland discover they're missing one important ingredient: Spring.
Synopsis:
As Strawberry Shortcake and her friends get together to begin their annual planting, they find the ground is still frozen. Three of them head off in search of spring, while the others stay behind in case spring arrives while they're gone.
Along the way, they meet Old Man Winter, who's having to work overtime because Spring is late on the job. When he refers to Spring as "she," the friends find out that Spring is actually a girl.
Farther down the road, they come across a little girl making snow angels. After playing with her for a while, they tell her that they have to be on their way, because they're looking for Spring. The little girl, who turns out to be Spring, hadn't realized she was so important, so she immediately heads off to Strawberryland to help.
My Thoughts:
Mixed into this cute story are some science lessons. While searching for Spring, Ginger Snap mentions that if Spring doesn't come, she'll run out of ingredients to make her cookies. She explains that the warm weather is needed to grow grain, which the hens eat so they can lay eggs. The warm sunshine also makes the grass grow, which the cows eat to make milk and butter. The farmers need the warmth to plant their crops of wheat and sugarcane, which are needed for flour and sugar.
Orange Blossom then adds that bees and butterflies need Spring in order to help the plants and flowers grow, and that without them there would be no fruit.
The characters who appear in this book are Strawberry Shortcake, Apple Dumplin', Ginger Snap, Orange Blossom, Angel Cake, Huckleberry Pie and Spring. Strawberry Shortcake has short red hair and brown eyes. Apple Dumplin', who is Strawberry Shortcake's younger sister, has blond hair and green eyes. Ginger Snap has medium skin, brown eyes and straight bluish-black hair. Orange Blossom has dark skin, brown eyes and curly, dark brown hair. Angel Cake has blond hair and blue eyes, and Huckleberry Pie has brown hair and brown eyes. Spring, who is introduced in this book, is a little girl with green eyes, orange hair and green wings.
Honey Pie Pony is also included, along with Custard the cat and Pupcake the dog.
Since this story is mainly set outside, the predominate background colors are blue and green. All around are colorful hills topped with snow that looks like icing.
Even with the predominantly blue and green backgrounds and the presence of Huckleberry Pie, this is still clearly a girls' book.
My daughters like this book because of the presence of Spring, who looks more like a cross between a fairy and an elf than a little girl. They also like the illustration of the inside of Ginger Snap's cookie factory, with lots of big machines churning out conveyor belts full of cookies.
Written by Monique Z. Stephens and illustrated by Josie Yee and Ken Edwards.
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