Green as a Bean

Green as a Bean written by Karla Kuskin is such a sweet and fun story. It challenges the imagination and really gets the kids excited as well as involved in the story with every turn of the page. Originally published back in 1960 under the title Square as a House, Karla Kuskin added on to her short, sweet children’s poem and republished it in 2007.

Each page of the book gets the creative side of your mind thinking. What would you be, lets say, if you were the color red? Or maybe you are the shape of a square? Perhaps you're not a color or a square shape but loud or fierce. What would you be then? Maybe you’re a dragon, a house, painted blocks or the beautiful sunset. The art work that accompanies each page is illustrated by Melissa Iwai and I’ve got a pretty good feeling that the little boy illustrated throughout the story is none other than her little boy, making the story even sweeter.

Reading each page, my daughter was all too excited to tell what she would be. She even tried to make her descriptions rhyme like they do in the book. We had so much fun thinking up what we would be if we were the color red or if we were soft or loud.

"If you could be soft would you be the snow or twenty-five pillows or breezes that blow the blossoms that fall from the sassafras tree? Tell me, sweet soft one, what would you be?"  

The end of the book is my favorite part. In the end, the lesson learned is to be happy being you. It's just as wonderful and more than wishing to be anything else. The illustration that ends the book is also darling and grabbed me daughter's attention the most. A sweet little boy sitting on the floor reading the same book, with the same illustration we are looking at repeated over and over again as if in a mirror.

A great project to go with this book is to pull out the construction paper and crayons, paints or markers. Have your child pick out their favorite part. Then let you child draw their own illustration of what they think they would be. If you have children that can take on a bigger, more detailed activity, have them sit down and make their own short story. Use the colored construction paper for bright and colorful backgrounds. When each page is finished you can staple the pages together, hole punch and use string or ribbon. If you have them, you can also use brads to bind you child’s book. Oh, and don’t forget to create a beautiful book cover! Projects like these are great for books that really get kids going and using their noggins.

Karla Kuskin has published over fifty children's books. She has also won awards for several of them over her career. After reading and thoroughly enjoying Green as a Bean, I can easily see why she has been so successful in her work.