Food in Children’s Books

Since the bond between food and history is so perfectly and indisputable linked, I thought that I would focus more on the interesting, but not as well known, link between literature and food. And children’s literature is a great place to start! Children’s books are unashamedly some of my favorites! I love the sweetness and innocence that so many classic children’s picture books and chapter books have.
You may be surprised just how many children’s books have food in them! One does not often think of children’s books as a topic for food, unless you are teaching a three year old to count using a vegetable garden counting book or the like, but food does crop up in children’s books.
Often it is used as a way to help the child better understand the time period they are reading about or studying or set the atmosphere and tone for a book. Here are a list of some of my favorite children’s picture and chapter books that have food as a major part of them!

Picture Books:

• Blueberries for Sal
• If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (and others in the series)
• A Very Hungry Caterpillar
• Stone Soup
• The Little Red Hen
• The Gingerbread Man
• Jamberry
• The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear
• The Ox-Cart Man
• The Hole Story of the Doughnut
• A Fine Dessert

Chapter Books:

• The Little House series
• The Secret Garden
• Betsy and Tacy series
• James and the Giant Peach
• Emily’s Runaway Imagination
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
• The Chronicles of Narnia
• Redwall series

What are some of your favorite children’s books with food as a major theme? I’d love to hear!