Johnny Appleseed

On a recent quick stop into Barnes and Noble I picked up this copy of Johnny Appleseed.  We have already read it several times and it is destined to become one of our fall classics here in the Bonny Blue House.

The poem tells the story of John Chapman, Johnny Appleseed, in a light and lyrical way that will appeal to young children but is in no way trite or twaddle.

The illustrations are absolutely captivating. Kathy Jakobsen Hallquist created detailed folk art paintings in rich autumn colors with an enormous amount of detail. Kelli and Kevin spent quite a it of time pouring over the pages and enjoying the little drawings in the borders which depict Chapman’s life. Truth be told I spent a bit of time doing the same thing.  The full page pictures illustrate the story from the point of view of Hannah, an elderly woman who met Chapman and is now telling the tale of his life and legacy to her grandchildren.

It’s all very charming.

There is a page of factual information at the end of the book that my kids enjoyed and we will be drying some apple seeds this fall to plant in the spring to continue Johnny’s legacy.  Tomorrow we will print out some of the Johnny Appleseed activities on Enchanted Learning.

This is a soft cover book but really good quality so it should last a while. The upside of that is that it is quite inexpensive so I would recommend picking up one for yourself and one for a friend. ;).

Have a blessed day!