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The
Organic Adventures of Tucker the Tomato
By
Rey Ortega and Amanda Moeckel
Sun
King Publishing, 2003
$6.95
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| Rey
Ortega has been baking cookies for more than ten years,
but his latest creation has not emerged from the oven.
Together with artist Amanda Moeckel, he has produced The
Organic Adventures of Tucker the Tomato,
a tale that would please any natural food fan. |
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| Written
for very young children, this picture book combines Moeckel's
creative artwork with a simple story of a tomato that
falls off an organic tomato truck and finally wends its
way to a natural foods market. In the process Tucker realizes
how different he is from those conventionally grown tomatoes
covered with pesticicide residue. He also encounters a
number of creatures and experiences obstacles before reaching
his final destination in this 32-page adventure. |
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| The
book concludes with a clever maze that depicts the obstacles
and asks the young reader to "Help Tucker the Tomato
find his way to the natural food store!" As an added
bonus the last page asks the reader to draw Tucker and
his friends in the space provided. |
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| Tucker
the Tomato even has his own website at Tuckertomato.com
where he personally welcomes young readers. |
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| Rey
Ortega is a natural food exponent who owns Sun Flour Baking
Company that produces vegan cookies and snacks with no
hydrogenated oils, dairy, eggs, or refined sugar. His
co-creator, Amanda Moeckel, graduated Magna Cum Laude
from American University with a BA in Studio Art. Her
artwork has won numerous awards. |
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| Parents
who are vegetarian and/or are interested in introducing
their children to organic, natural foods will find The
Organic Adventures of Tucker the Tomato
an ideal book for a read-aloud session. Tucker's facial
expressions are worth the price of the book. The illustrations
throughout are priceless. |
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