Spuds by Karen Hesse, Illusrated by Wendy Watson

One of Karen Hesse's newer books, Spuds tells the story of three kids, Maybelle, Jack, and Eddie who go to gather potatoes from a nearby field one dark night so they can surprise their mom with extra food on the table. Upon the children's arrival home, they realize that they had not been collecting potatoes like they thought. Instead, they had been harvesting stone and rocks. The children are grounded for going into someone else's field, and they must apologize to Mr. Kenney. However, when Maybelle announces "we'd only gone after them spuds so Ma wouldn't have to work so hard," their Ma makes a delicious dinner, and the love emanates from their family.

Set in the country, I really enjoyed this story. As in Come On Rain!, Hesse does not specify a specific time period for Spuds, but I believe it was set during the Great Depression. I came to this conclusion based on the old-fashioned outfits, the water basin sink, and the antique stove in the story. Plus, their rural country life is filled with obstacles such as getting enough food on the table. Interesting to note is that these children are being raised without a father. The story does not address this directly, but a father is never mentioned, and the children's Ma works the nightshift. This single-parent family still makes the most out of their situation. Even though the children shouldn't have gone out to the field to "steal" potatoes from a neighbor's field, they were doing it for the sake of their Ma.

The dialect used in this story also reflects country life. The words used took me back in time and place into the context of the children the children. For example, "'Less we gather them spuds off Kenney's field, they'll go to rot, sure thing." The improper grammar usage adds to the delight of the story. Told from Jack's perspective, the story reflects a down-to-earth story of kids trying to help their Ma.

The pictures too add an extra delight to the story. They show the emotions of the kids when they're sad to see their mother head off to work, their excitement when the realize they can help their Ma, their disappointment and guilt at taking what they thought were potatoes, and joy in being together as a family. Whoever wrote the book cover sums it up best by stating, "Wendy Watson's warm, glowing artwork is a perfect complement ot a story that overflows with love, integrity, and down-home family values." Karen Hesse's heartwarming writing style and Wendy Watson's use of watercolors and colored ink create a unique historical fiction story that I would definitely share with my class.