TINY BLESSINGS FOR MEALTIME

Love is where the food is.

This tiny board book focuses on all that a meal can do. Food helps us grow strong, smells good, and brings a family together. The text consists of one long sentence, one phrase per double-page spread, until the end, where it concludes: “for giving much more than enough— / thank you for filling us with love.” Since the force that is being thanked is never named, the book has potential application in families of many faiths. Children and families of all ethnicities enjoy the delicious food. Walsh’s style has a bulbous look, and the illustrations are muddied by a color palette that leans on dark greens, oranges, reds, and browns, but the compositions are smartly arranged and put just as much emphasis on smiling faces as they do on the food. Another in the series, Tiny Blessings for a Merry Christmas, publishes concurrently and explores the Christmas holiday with the same illustrator and narrative style. The books are quite small but hard-bound and should stand up to even the most active readers.

A simple ode to all food has to offer.