  | Gathering table Author: Eady, Antwan | |
| Price: $23.28 | ||
Summary:
A Southern family gathers in their backyard around a special table to celebrate important moments throughout the year, from anniversaries to new births, as they share food, traditions, and love.
| Illustrator: | Ladd, London |
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (+) (03/15/25)
School Library Journal (03/01/25)
Full Text Reviews:
School Library Journal - 03/01/2025 Gr 1–5—This poetic story about the table where the narrator's family gathers for reunions, holidays, and special events is a tribute to family. The food at the gathering table changes throughout the year—a lowcountry boil at crabbing season or a three-tiered rainbow cake for a wedding. But one thing remains certain: the food nourishes the body and soul of all who gather. The illustrations are cohesive but never one-note. Every picture centers the same yard and table, here in deep summer greens for Juneteenth, now under a colorful New Year's sky. Overall, this creates a sense of familiarity, inviting readers into the intimacy and stability the family shares. The multimedia paintings also have a depth and texture that is immersive, bringing viewers close while the edge of the yard fades into the background. Eady's author's note adds nuance to the poem, describing his childhood gathering table and how the illustrations reflect the Sea Islands and the Gullah Geechee who call them home. VERDICT Beautiful illustrations and rhythmic writing make this a wonderful read-aloud book about family "love, hope, pride, and freedom."—Shelby Hogle - Copyright 2025 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
Other - 03/24/2025 In an artfully rendered picture book that spans numerous events, a child recounts a Black family’s tradition of standing around a table under a river birch tree that’s draped with Spanish moss. Eady (The Last Stand) movingly traces the occasions, along the way highlighting ideals about what the table represents. In an early scene, generations gather to honor "Grandpa and Grandma... for the family they’ve built." The child protagonist makes a face as the grandparents exchange loving kisses: "This is the table of love. (Sloppy love, if you ask me.)" The family also celebrates with fireworks and shows up for the narrator’s uncles’ wedding ("This is the table of pride"), before gathering for a low-country boil and a Juneteenth celebration ("This is the table of freedom"). Ladd (When I Hear Spirituals) employs acrylic paint, cut paper, and tissue paper, giving each verdant image impasto-like height, and elegantly underlining themes "Of love. Of hope. Of pride. Of freedom" as the family members come together again and again-never leaving empty-handed. An author’s note concludes. Ages 4-8. Author’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. Illustrator’s agent: Lori Nowicki, Painted Words. (May) - Copyright 2025
