“That’s Papa’s Way,” by Kate banks, illustrated by Lauren Castillo.
Frances Foster Books, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 2009, 32 pages, K-2.
Parenting is one of the most challenging but enjoyable roles in marriage. Children can only learn if the parents are willing to teach.
Too often, today we speak of “quality time” in parenting. Adults from previous generations would not know what we are talking about. The reason for this is that they knew that children require lots of time and attention. They didn’t necessarily rate the times as good, better or best.
So sometimes, the best time parents can spend with their children is when they aren’t trying to do very much. They are not trying to turn the children into great pianists or presidents. They are just spending time with their youngsters. Kate Banks has written a charming story about a young girl spending the day fishing with her father. The title of this delightful tale is “That’s Papa’s Way.”
It is early in the morning and Papa picks up a coffee can and his daughter takes her little shovel. They walk into the forest looking for earthworms. When they come across a good location, Papa stops and the little girl begins digging in the soil. Soon, Papa reaches down and picks up an earthworm. He wiggles it in front of the child and she pulls back. So Papa lets her take out her little shovel and dig up some more worms. Finally, when the can is full, the father and daughter begin to head to a lake. They are going to be fishing together all day.
They load up the boat and the little girl tumbles in as she tries to enter. It is no big deal. Soon Papa is rowing the boat out along the shores of the lake. They are looking for a good place to begin fishing. Soon, they find the ideal area and Papa casts into the water. The little girl merely drops her line over the side of the boat. Then they begin waiting.
The ducks begin to swim by as they wait and wait and wait. The child begins to get anxious for something to happen. But Papa tells her that people like to think when they are fishing, and that the sport requires patience. It doesn’t help that people in other boats are beginning to catch fish.
Then Papa’s line jerks and he begins reeling in a beautiful fish. All of a sudden, sea gulls begin flying around the boat and geese begin swimming toward them. The little girl is trying to figure out what all of this means when her line sharply tugs. As her pole dips to the water, her mouth opens wide. What has just happened?
What just took place? Did the girl catch her first fish? Have you ever caught a fish? What did it feel like? What role did Papa have in all of this? And finally, what do parents and children learn by just spending a day together?
To find out the answers to these and other questions, go to the library and check out this pleasant story, “That’s Papa’s Way,” by Kate Banks.
Kate Banks is a delightful author and her stories are uplifting and fun. The father and daughter have a very wholesome relationship in the book, and the child learns trust from her caring dad. By the end of the day, both father and daughter have deepened their love for each other. I hope you get a chance to go to the library and check out this pleasing book. It is great fun to read. Enjoy!
