Sweet (or maybe slightly sour), juicy and refreshing. In the season for fresh fruit, peaches are a summer icon in their own right—and from May to late September, peach season is in full swing.
“How to Eat a Peach,” by Karen Schaufeld, explores a love of peaches from a squirrel’s perspective—a fun read to help kids ages 1-10 experience a tasty summer pastime.
“As a kid, I used to love cutting up a ripe peach over a bowl of cornflakes for breakfast,” Schaufeld says.
For the Leesburg children’s author, peaches taste like summer. Her story follows the squirrel and his friend in a quest to acquire summer’s iconic fruit with a suspenseful farm adventure.
Each of Schaufeld’s books represent a new kind of modern fable. Filled with good messages and language designed to challenge readers, her stories were inspired from her own experiences reading books to her children when they were young.
“I thought I’d really like to write something with beautiful illustrations and language—something that didn’t talk down to children and conveyed a message, a gentle message even for difficult subjects,” Schaufeld says.
More from Schaufeld on Washington FAMILY.com: Local Author’s Children’s Book Celebrates Fatherhood and Friendship
She places a little insect on each page of her books so children can “follow along” with these hidden critters as family members and friends read to them. These markers not only keep kids looking at the pages but, in turn, the words.
An English major in college before going to law school, Schaufeld stresses the value of advanced language for building vocabulary. The language she uses in her books is generally kid-friendly, with a few more complex words sprinkled in for enrichment.
Schaufeld co-founded All Ages Read Together (AART), a 501c3 school readiness program for low-income preschool-aged children. A mother of three grown children, she now lives with her husband and dogs in Leesburg, where she supports local and global causes related to education, food insecurity, shelter, healthcare and the advancement of the arts. Find her books at karenschaufeld.com
Story Companion
Do you love peaches, too? Looking for a snack for your next story-time? Local chef Christophe Tanneau-Kervran provides a peach dessert you can make with your family below.
White Peach and Meyer Lemon Sorbet
by Chef Christophe Tanneau-Kervran, of River Farm, Leesburg, Va.
Ingredients:
1 cup of water
1 cup of sugar
1 1/2 pounds White Peach (fresh)
One Meyer lemon juice and zests
Directions:
- Bring a pot of water to a boil.
- Boil the peaches for a few minutes until the skin starts removing itself.
- Cool the peaches quickly in ice cold water.
- Dry the peaches and remove the skin and pit, keep the peach flesh in a bowl.
- Measure all other ingredients and place them in a pot with the peaches, add lemon juice and zests.
- Bring to a boil and stir until sugar has dissolved completely.
- Let cool until completely cold.
- Once cold, puree in a food blender until smooth consistency.
- Transfer the sorbet to a large bowl and freeze for 6 hours or overnight.
