Frances, one of children's best-loved characters for over 30 years, now springs to life even more in Bread and Jam for Frances, which is beautifully reillustrated in sparkling full color by Lillian Hoban. In this memorable story, Frances decides that bread and jam are all she wants to eat, and her understanding parents grant her wish...at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even snacktime. Can there ever be too much bread and jam?

It's not easy having a picky eater at the dinner table. In Bread and Jam for Frances the adorable little raccoon Frances is facing the same dilemma many little ones face: having to try new foods. Frances' mom, however, is up for the challenge and devises a way to get Frances to put down the bread and jam and try a variety of different food.  The hand-drawn pictures feature a fuzzy raccoon family interacting across pages brightly shaded with color pencil.

Frances complains at each meal, finding something wrong with everything her mother prepares for the family.  The eggs for breakfast are either too runny, too hard, or too funny looking. She also asks many questions about new foods, "Why are French-cut string beans called string beans?" and "What do cutlets wear before they're breaded?" Odds are, you have faced a food challenge or two with your little one, so you can easily change the words to reflect the food your family eats. Talking about France's mother's plan with your child is a great way to help them realize the importance of introducing new foods into their diet. Even their favorite food would get old if it was all they ate at every meal.

I read this story with my friend Sam when he was three. Sam was stuck on macaroni noodles - plain. Don't try to add cheese, butter, or even salt - or he wouldn't eat them! After reading Frances' story, I asked Sam what he thought of it, hoping he would make the connection with his stubbornness for macaroni noodles. Sam answered, "I wonder if I would like bread and jam too?" Well, at least it was a different food.

--Audra