“Try It! How Frieda Caplan Changed the Way We Eat is an empowering story of a woman who not only changed the way people ate but the way people view women in the world. An inspiring true story of an innovator ahead of her time.” – Momma Braga
Synopsis
In 1956, Frieda Caplan started working at the Seventh Street Produce Market in Los Angeles. Instead of competing with the men in the business with their apples, potatoes, and tomatoes, Frieda thought, why not try something new? Staring with mushrooms, Frieda began introducing fresh and unusual foods to her customers – snap peas, seedless watermelon, mangos, and more!
By 1962, she founded Frieda’s Specialty Produce and became the first woman in the United States to own a produce company. Frieda Kaplan was always willing to try something new – are you?
#MelAndNikkiReview
Try It! How Frieda Caplan Changed the Way We Eat is an empowering picture book that biographs the incredible life of Frieda Caplan. Frieda was a produce pioneer who forever changed the way Americans eat by introducing a whole new world of delicious foods to the United States – from baby carrots to blood oranges to kiwis and more!
This book is truly inspiring especially for young ladies as it allows them to see that you can accomplish anything that you put your heart and mind to. It inspired me too and I loved learning about the life of Frieda Caplan. After reading the story, you can take some time to read the bonus in the back that goes into further detail about Frieda and about her family. It was so wonderful to see that her journey inspired her daughters and granddaughters to follow her footsteps.
For this #MelAndNikkiReview we give this book 5 kiwis out of 5! A book that beautifully describes and illustrates a woman’s journey to change the way we see foods and the world around us. An overall great book to read during Women’s History Month and all year round. Our history is important to know and have it inspire future generations.
This book is recommended for children ages three to eight. If you would like to purchase a copy, click here.
About the Author
Mara Rockliff is the author of many historical books for children, including Mesmerized, winner of the Cook Prize and an Orbis Pictus Honor book, and Gingerbread for Liberty!, an ALA Notable Children’s Book and winner of the Garden State Children’s Book Award and Land of Enchantment Book Award. Under the pen name Lewis B. Montgomery, she wrote all twelve books in the popular Milo and Jazz Mysteries chapter book series, which has been translated into Spanish, French, and Chinese. She lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with her family. Visit her online at MaraRockliff.com.
About the Illustrator
Giselle Potter has illustrated many books, including Kate and the Beanstalk by Mary Pope Osborne, an ALA-ALSC notable book; The Boy Who Loved Words by Roni Schotter, a Parents’ Choice Gold Award winner; and Cecil the Pet Glacier by Matthea Harvey. She is the author and illustrator of Tell Me What to Dream About and This Is My Dollhouse – both inspired by her daughters – and The Year I Didn’t Go to School, about traveling through Italy with her parents’ puppet troupe when she was eight. Giselle also illustrates “Ties,” a weekly column in the Well section of The New York Times. She lives in Rosendale, New York, with her husband and two daughters. Visit her online at GisellePotter.com.
