Pickin’ Peas

Winner of Tennessee Volunteer State Award A clever, singing rabbit eats his way through the pea patch until Little Girl snatches him up, and he is soon singing a new tune as he plans his escape. With a nod to Brer Rabbit, Pickin Peas is adapted from two folktales collected in Alabama and Virginia. The lively storytelling voice of award-winning author Margaret Read MacDonald, combined with Pat Cummings' bright, bold contemporary illustrations, makes this timeless battle-of-wits an instant classic. This southern trickster folktale will teach readers the importance of resourcefulness, respect and fairness. Tell this story as a sing-along and make up dance moves as a class. Have fun with it

Margaret Read MacDonald has written over 60 books. Margaret brings folktales to life in her picture books with a playful, lilting language that delights and engages children of all ages from 4 to 84. She has traveled the world entertaining audiences and collecting tales from other cultures. Her PhD in Folklore combined with her experience as a children’s librarian gives added meaning and authenticity to the retelling of these classic stories. When she isn’t traveling, she lives in Seattle, Washington. Pat Cummings’ work has been recognized with the Coretta Scott King Award, the Orbis Pictus, the NAACP Image Award and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award. After graduating from Pratt Institute she began a career as a freelance illustrator, working on editorial, advertising, theatrical and, eventually, picture book projects. Pat is the author and/or illustrator of over 35 books, both fiction and non-fiction. She has also worked as a producer and writer for Nickelodeon’s Gullah Gullah Island and now teaches children’s book illustration and writing at Parsons, The New School for Design and Pratt Institute. Former gifted and award-winning students of her class include David Eza Stein, Hiroe Nakata and Julian Hector. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Pat was an Army brat and grew up in Germany, Okinawa, Kansas and Virginia. She and her husband Chuku Lee live in a loft in beautiful downtown Brooklyn, New York.