Right This Very Minute

January 15, 2019
In this farm-themed picture book, children learn the sources of the foods they eat. Framed around children's mealtimes, this cheery picture book by Detlefsen (If You Had a Jetpack, 2018, etc.) and from the publishing arm of the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture pays tribute to farmers and farming. Illustrated with idyllic scenes of farmers at work and a diverse mix of children, the book begins with a little girl about to eat her pancake breakfast. The stories of farmers, her mother tells her, are "right here on your table," and "Right this very minute," farmers are in orchards testing juice oranges for ripeness, readying a field for planting wheat, and collecting maple sap for syrup. On subsequent pages, children learn how snack-time cranberries and peanuts are farmed and how lunchboxes hold the "hard work of so many," from dairy farmers to carrot growers and beekeepers. Dinner puts the spotlight on cattle ranchers and vegetable growers. The upbeat narrative, which includes child-accessible facts about crop rotation, soil sensors, and how produce gets to market, is complemented by the warm appeal of the observant, full-page illustrations by Kurilla (Wild Fairies #2: Lily's Water Woes, 2018, etc.) One caution: this book isn't written with vegetarians in mind or for children not ready for the reality of what happens to many animals on a farm.An age-appropriate informational picture book offering a sunny celebration of farming.

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