AROUND THE TABLE THAT GRANDAD BUILT

A multiracial family gathers for a big meal and gives thanks.

Hill’s text initially reads as a cumulative poem, opening with reference to the eponymous “table that Grandad built.” Three adults and two children, perhaps a mother and father, two daughters, and Grandad (all of whom appear white with light skin), carry the table. A ginger-haired child who appears on every spread narrates. A joyful, naïve quality defines the acrylic, crayon, and digital art, and on later spreads, cousins bring sunflowers to decorate the table, and adults who appear to be the speaker’s parents, grandmother, aunts, and uncles all help set it. Some present as people of color, with dark skin and hair, and later cues from food and clothing may suggest South Asian and/or Latinx heritage. A textual shift occurs at the midpoint of the book when foods are introduced, and the text abandons its “House That Jack Built” pattern. Instead, foods are listed one after another, though still in the same rhythm: “This is the stack of toasty tamales. / These are the samosas, spicy and hot.” The family gives thanks, but there’s nothing to suggest that the gathering is definitively linked to an American Thanksgiving holiday, though a line referring to “the rice pudding we have every year” indicates an annual event.

A warm and welcoming table.