There's a watermelon growing in the corner of the patch where the fence posts meet, and Jesse is waiting for it. Waiting for it to fill up with the cool summer rain and the hot summer sun. Waiting until at last it is ripe and ready for eating. Waiting until it is ready for her family's annual Watermelon day. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

PreS-Gr 3‘In this tale that celebrates both summertime and the magic of anticipation, young Jesse finds a watermelon in the corner of the garden. Her pappy agrees that it will be a big one, worthy of "a watermelon day." The mention of this annual family event fills Jesse with warm memories. As the season drags on and the heat intensifies, the girl begins to feel that "...she and her watermelon might both burst from the sheer waiting of it all." When her father finally declares that it looks like a watermelon day, readers may think the waiting is over. Not so. With a whole summer of heat inside it, the melon is set to cool off in the lake. Jesse waits patiently as hours of softball, banjo playing, and eating stretch by. Finally, Pappy's big fist splits the melon in half and Jesse experiences the moment that has been making her mouth water since spring. Gottlieb's primitive art shimmers with the intense colors of summer. Oil pastels and simple designs enhance the sense of childlike wonder. This book is a love song to a simple pleasure and to a little girl who enjoys it as only a child can, dancing her watermelon dance and spitting seeds into the setting sun.‘Lisa S. Murphy, formerly at Dauphin County Library System, Harrisburg, PA From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.