Review of "The First Strawberries," by Joseph Bruchac

Review of

The First Strawberries, by Joseph Bruchac ISBN 9780425287477


Five out of five stars

 This Cherokee fable is retold in a delightful and informative way. It has an Adam and Eve type plot, but with a happy ending, even though it involves a fruit, specifically strawberries. It opens with the sentence, “Long ago when the world was new, the Creator made a man and a woman.”

 When the man comes home from hunting and supper is not ready because the woman is picking flowers, he is angry. As a consequence, the woman simply walks away at a rapid pace. Unable to match her speed, the man falls behind and the sun takes pity on him. After several tries with known fruits and berries, the sun creates a new fruit, the strawberry. Unable to resist the temptation, the woman stops to pick and eat. All is forgiven and from that point on the Cherokee have a new source of seasonal fruit.

 The artwork is excellent, and the text is written at the level of early elementary school. This book would be an excellent addition to elementary school libraries, and I would have read it to my daughter when she was young.