Week 1: Bread and Jam for Frances

• Week: 1
• Book Title: Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban, illustrated by Lillian Hoban
• Book Cover Image:



Copyright 1964, Harper & Row Publishers, Inc. 

• Book Summary:  This picture book is about a badger named Frances who has decided to eat nothing but bread and jam.  Frances says, "When I have bread and jam I always know what I am getting, and I am always pleased."  Her mother and father go along with the plan, giving Frances bread and jam for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  Frances soon discovers that a little variety is a good thing.
• APA Reference:  Hoban, R.  (1964).  Bread and jam for Frances.  New York, NY: Harper and Row Publishers, Inc.
• My Impressions:  I like the way Frances is depicted as a typical kid.  She thinks this is a great idea, getting what she wants all the time while Mother and Father are suggesting she try different things.  One thing Hoban gives Frances is poetry and singing.  I think this adds another dimension to the Frances character making her "real."  The poetry and singing show the reader what is going on in Frances's head, clueing us in on when her feeling change.  The book is well written with simple yet charming charcoal and watercolor drawings.
• Professional Review: Bread and Jam for Frances
  Book Review   by:SandraKae     Original Author: Russell Hoban
  

  • Summary rating: 5 stars (3 Ratings)
  • Visits : 1458
  • words: 300
    Frances is a badger cub who loves bread and jam. Mother badger cooks delicious meals for her family, and Father badger enjoys how each dish looks on the plate, and every day baby Gloria tries new foods. But Frances is quite content to eat bread and jam; in fact, at school she even trades her delicious lunches that Mother packs for her for—bread and jam. Finally, her mother decides to provide bread and jam for her at every meal, and she considers herself to be quite lucky. However, this does not last long. As she watches those around her enjoying a variety of foods, she realizes that she is tired of bread and jam… Throughout the story, Frances sings a little made up song about bread and jam, and as the story progresses, her song changes, indicating her altering feelings about her affinity for bread and jam. Eventually, at the sight of her plate of bread and jam, she begins to cry as her family enjoys a delicious spaghetti dinner, and she sings a sad little song about being tired of jam. Each scene in this story is vividly and beautifully written, making the story especially appealing to young children. When her schoolmate Albert prepares to eat of his lunch consisting of a cream-cheese-and-tomato sandwich on rye, a pickle, a hardboiled egg with a little cardboard salt shaker, grapes, a tangerine, custard, and milk; we can sympathize with her as she watches him enjoy his lunch, while all she has is bread and jam. Originally published in 1964, Bread and Jam for Frances approaches the common childhood issue of trying new foods in such an appealing and humorous way, it has been a family favorite of ours for many years.

  Published: June 06, 2005  

  
  
• Kae, S.  (2005, June 6).  Bread and jam for Frances.  [Review of book Bread and Jam for Frances, by R. Hoban].  Shvoong Summaries and Reviews. Retrieved through shvoong.com.

• Library Uses:  Bread and Jam for Frances could be used as a jumping off point for a nutrition lesson or unit.  An activity students could do is make jam sandwiches, try them, and then write a food review.  Students could try different jams, vote on their favorites, and graph the taste test results for a bulletin board in the library.