Apples, Apples, Apples

A cheerful tale, sweet and crisp with some easy lessons about apples. In early autumn a family of bunnies decides to go apple-picking, and off they go to Mr. Miller's orchard. He shows the parents and Minna and Pip how to pick apples, and how to use a special tool to get them down from the high branches. His chart shows the varieties and their characteristics and he labels the parts of a sliced-open apple. Teaching them how apples grow, both from seed and by grafting, he also informs them that apples belong to the rose family. When they get home with their bags of apples, they make applesauce and learn to make apple prints. There's even an apple song and a collection of apple sayings (as in "You are the apple of my eye"). The images are cut-paper collages in poster paint colors: not only are the apple shapes quite pleasing, but Mr. Miller's red hat, Mom's purple scarf, and the family's green table are eye-catching shapes, bold and clear. A delicious addition to the apple bookshelf. (Picture book/nonfiction. 4-8)