Giving Thanks How Thanksgiving Became a National Holiday by Denise Kiernan Book Review

 

The beautifully illustrated true story of how Thanksgiving became a national holiday in America, of Sarah Josepha Hale, the woman who made the holiday happen, and of the role of gratitude the world over. Marvelously brought to life by the New York Times bestselling author Denise Kiernan.

All across the world, among hundreds of cultures and across centuries, people have come together to give thanks. But Americans didn’t have an official Thanksgiving holiday until the 1800s. The holiday Americans know today exists because of a woman named Sarah Josepha Hale, a spirited letter-writing campaign, a sympathetic president, and a civil war.  
 
This beautifully illustrated picture book shares the true story of how Thanksgiving became a national American holiday and offers a look at the timeless and global power of gratitude.

My Thoughts:

Giving Thanks focuses on how a young woman named Josepha Hale persistence was able to get Thanksgiving as a national holiday celebrated on the same day each year. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday.

She knew that different communities had days that they would come together and be thankful for many things. Some had it in the spring and others celebrated different days throughout the country.

 The book doesn’t talk about the pilgrims or the Native American Indians. She does mention the Civil War during a Thanksgiving. The main focus I would say is gratitude and coming together being thankful.

The illustrations by Jamey Christoph are good and enjoyable.

Overall if you are looking for a book to talk about the woman who had a hand in creating Thanksgiving as a national holiday then this is a sweet book for your kids. It’s interesting and I didn’t know anything prior about Josepha Hale’s involvement in creating Thanksgiving as a national holiday. I personally would add other books that talk about the pilgrims to my kids books about Thanksgiving.

 

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product in exchange for my honest thoughts.