PPBF: The Shopping Basket

Author/Illustrator: John Burningham
Publisher: Candlewick Press, 1996 (originally published by Jonathon Cape, 1980)
Age: 3-5
Themes: shopping, city life, problem solving
Opening: “Run down to the store for me, will you, Steven, and buy six eggs, Five bananas, four apples, three oranges for the baby, two doughnuts, and a bag of chips for your snack. And leave this note at Number 25.”
Summary: (from my library catalog) On his way home from a quick trip to the store, Steven encounters several marauding animals ready to relieve him of his goods.

Why I like this book: this book embodies what I love so much about John Burningham’s work: he incorporates something to learn without hitting kids over the head, gives a child character’s imagination full credit, and in the illustrations he also packs in humor and emotion in just the right amounts. Brilliant!

Resources/Activities: go shopping with a list; think about who might approach you wanting any of the items on your list and why; make a note of different scenes you pass along the way; did you forget anything on the list?

For more Perfect Picture Book picks with teacher/parent resources, check out the list on Susanna Hill’s blog HERE.