Every once in awhile you see a book somewhere that draws you in and you know you have to buy it. Potato: A Tale From The Great Depression was that way for me. It brings a complicated historical event and time down to a simple level for children, showing them what life was like for one family during the Great Depression.

There are many valuable life lessons children can learn from reading about and understanding the Great Depression including:

• kindness
• teamwork
• family
• courage
• thriftiness
• making do
• resourcefulness
• hard work

This is a wonderful picture book for starting discussions in these areas.

Potato: A Tale from the Great Depression

Kate Lied tells the story of her grandparents, Clarence and Agnes, and what happened when Clarence lost his job. They had not been married all that long and they had a baby girl. But with determination, courage, and hard physical work they were able to persevere during those difficult years.

The story is written simply with just a sentence or two on each page. The illustrations are warm, but also illustrate the difficulties faced by the little family.

Potato: A Tale From The Great Depression is an lovely picture book to help young children begin to understand what happened to families during this tumultuous time. It also makes an excellent starting point for discussing character traits such as courage, perseverance, and sacrifice.

This picture book is highly recommended and has a permanent place on our family bookshelves.