Wonderful, picture books for children of all ages!
Children’s picture books
that illuminate the work of farm laborers
and/or the pressures on families living in poverty times.

Curated by Julie Olsen Edwards, Director of Cabrillo College  
Children’s Peace Education & Anti-Bias Library.

Amelia's Road
Author: Linda Jacobs Altman
Illustrated by Enrique Sánchez
Ages 4 – 8
Amelia's family labors in the fields picking vegetables and fruits. As each year's crop is completed, they must pack up and take Amelia on the road - over and over again. A special tree, in a special place, helps her discover a way to "belong" and gain a sense of permanence in her life as a migrant. This family of U.S. campesinos is beautifully shown in marvelous pastel illustrations.

El camino de Amelia 
Por Linda Jacobs Altman
Ilustrado por Enrique Sánchez
Apropiado para niños de 4 a 8 años de edad
La familia de Amelia trabaja en los campos recogiendo verduras y frutas. A medida que se completa la cosecha de cada año, deben empacar y llevar a Amelia de viaje una y otra vez. Un árbol especial en un lugar especial la ayuda a descubrir una manera de "pertenecer" y obtener un sentido de permanencia en su vida transitoria. Esta familia de campesinos de los EE.UU. se muestra bellamente en maravillosas ilustraciones en colores pastel. Esta versión está en español.

Apple Picking Time
Author: Michelle Benoit Slawson
Illustrated by Deborah Kogan Ray
Ages 2 – 8
Wonderful story of a family of migrant apple pickers, and of a little girl's sense of triumph as she helps the family. Loving scene of parents dancing to the radio during a lunch break, because it is their anniversary. A sense of where food comes from and of the labor that is required to bring it to our table. Child and father look Hispanic, mother looks Euro-American. Pickers are ethnically mixed.
Bread is for Eating ~ El pan es para comer
Author: David and Phillis Gershator
Illustrated by Emma Shaw-Smith
Ages 2 – 8
A gorgeous bilingual book in English and Spanish that celebrates bread and everyone who works so hard to make it; from the farmer, to the factory workers, to the miller who grinds the grains into flour. The vibrant art is reminiscent of Guatemalan folk art, depicting a variety of peoples and breads. Lovely story!
Un hermoso libro bilingüe en inglés y español que celebra el pan y todos los que trabajan tan duro para hacerlo: desde el agricultor y los trabajadores de la fábrica, hasta el molinero que muele los granos en harina. El arte vibrante recuerda el arte popular guatemalteco y representa una variedad de pueblos y panes. ¡Preciosa historia!
Dolores: Huerta: A Hero to Migrant Workers 
Author: Sarah Warren
Illustrated by Robert Casilla
Ages 4 – 8
Dolores is a teacher, a mother, and a friend. She wants to know why her students are hungry and why they don't have shoes. Dolores is a teacher, a warrior, an organizer, and a peacemaker. In this beautifully written, realistically illustrated book, children can see the key role Huerta played in organizing farm workers to demand an end to dangerous working conditions, to achieve a living wage, and to get health care so they could raise healthy children. This is one of the rare books that brings the issues of labor struggles and unionization to the understanding of young children. A powerful Jane Addams Honor Book for 2013.
Gathering the Sun
Author: Alma Flor Ada
Illustrated by Simón Silva
Ages 3 – 8
In simple words and sun-drenched paintings, Alma Flor Ada and Simon Silva take us into the fields and orchards, and into the lives of the people who work in them. Using the letters of the Spanish alphabet as a template, Ada has written 28 poems that celebrate honor and pride, family and friends, history and heritage, and, of course, the bounty of the harvest. Rosa Zubizarreta's translations reveal in English the emotional strength and underlying truth of each poem. This is an instant classic that should be read with every 3- to 8- year-old.
The Harvest Birds – Los pájaros de la cosecha  
Author: Blanca López de Mariscal
Illustrated by Enrique Flores
Ages 6 – 9
Juan Zanate used to sit under his favorite tree—with his only friends, the harvest birds—dreaming and planning his life. Juan had big dreams of becoming a farmer like his father and grandfather. But when his father died and the land was divided, there was only enough for his two older brothers. In this charming story from the heart of the Indian tradition in Mexico, Juan learns to determine his own destiny—with help from his loyal friends, the harvest birds. The birds advise Juan to keep the weeds around his land and to plant beans, squash, and corn together. Children, parents, and teachers will enjoy learning about the traditions of rural Mexico while passing on the importance of respecting nature and the possibility of making dreams happen.
I am Proud of My Family
Authors: David Bacon, Natalia Gracida Cruz, and George Feldman
Ages 2 – 8
At last, a book honoring the Mixteco-speaking peoples of Mexico who work the fields and orchards in California. Wonderful photographs show the families at work amid the many crops that grace our tables. The book is written in Spanish, English, and Mixteco, with an explanation that there are really 25 related Mixteco languages and that they are not a dialect of Spanish. The photos are respectful, beautiful, and honoring.
Potato: A Tale from the Great Depression
Author: Kate Lied
Illustrated by Lisa Campbell Ernst
Ages 4 – 8
When the Great Depression hits, the father in this young white family loses his job. The bank takes the family's house. The father's new job ends when the coal mine closes, and the family leaves Iowa to go pick potatoes in Idaho. Adults and children pick potatoes for money during the day and are allowed to harvest more each night for their own use. Later, they return to Iowa with a carload of potatoes and are able to trade them for other things they need to help them get along until Father gets a job.
The Rag Coat
Author: Lauren Mills
Ages 4 – 8
Minna proudly wears her new coat, made by the women in her family from clothing scraps.    But at her rural mountain school, the children laugh at her until she tells them the stories contained in the scraps. (Based on the Dolly Parton song).
Spuds
Author: Karen Hesse
Illustrated by Wendy Watson
Ages 3 – 8
A lovely story about three siblings in a poor family, Maybelle, Jack, and Eddie, who want to help Ma by putting something extra on the table. They set out in the dark to take potatoes from a nearby field, but when they arrive home and empty out their potato sacks, they are surprised to find just rocks inside!