All New Crafts for Thanksgiving

October 1, 2005
Gr. 3-5. This attractive book features 22 craft ideas with a Thanksgiving theme. Varied in level of difficulty, the projects use inexpensive and relatively easy-to-find materials such as plastic cups, construction paper, rubber bands, markers, yarn, and colored pipe cleaners. The pages have a cheerful look, with decorative motifs along the vertical borders as well as small, colorful pictures illustrating the lists of supplies and certain stages of construction. As always, Ross offers clear directions for each step in the process. Making the clever "Sailing Ship Cup" takes only 3 steps, while the "Recipe Card Box" takes 9, and the "Wild, Bouncy Turkey" decoration, 10. A good source of Thanksgiving-themed ideas for parents, teachers, caregivers, and scout leaders, this collection offers craft projects that will appeal mostly to kindergarten and primary-grade children, though the reading level is higher.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2006
Supplies such as yarn, paper plates, and pipe cleaners are put to expected use in a series of steps (folding, cutting, gluing) resulting in mostly pedestrian and uninspiring Thanksgiving-themed projects. Turkeys, pilgrims, and Indians reappear on napkin rings, place cards, table centerpieces, etc. The cartoony illustrations won't give readers much idea of what the finished products will look like.

(Copyright 2006 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)