Dereliction of Duty? Gus, the Pilgrim Turkey by Teresa Bateman

Gus loved being a turkey. He gobbled with his friends and was fed almost every time he turned around. Life was fabulous!

Gus had a good life. Every day brought a new pleasure. In the spring he gobbled the bugs that were everywhere. In the summer he cooled his feathers under the water sprinkler and basked in the sunshine. And then fall came, with colorful trees,  sweaters, and scarves. He couldn't wait for winter, to celebrate New Year's Day in his brand-new turkey tuxedo.

"I wouldn't worry about New Year's," said the Horse.

"Turkeys don't make it to January," added the Dog.

The goose explained Thanksgiving. They all told Turkey about the Pilgrim's hardships and the friendly Indians and the big harvest feast party.

Turkey didn't see the problem.

"What's on the menu?" he asks.

So his friends break the news that turkeys are on everyone's menu on Thanksgiving. GULP!

Sadly Gus packs his fall scarf and his tuxedo and takes his leave of the farm. But everywhere he goes, he sees pictures of roasted turkeys on Thanksgiving tables. Gus finds himself a fall fugitive!

Taking a cue from migrating birds, Gus stows away on a steamer heading south. He steals ashore in Mexico and sees blindfolded children hitting a colorful turkey with long sticks!

That's not good, so Gus goes back to his hiding place in a lifeboat. The weather gets rough and Gus gets seasick. The next time he ventures out, it's very cold, and the port is covered with heavy snow. He climbs out to take a closer look and meets two seamen who seem very happy to see him!

"Get a load of that! A real turkey--just in time for our Thanksgiving feast!"

Whoops! Gus disembarks from the ship quickly and tries to conceal himself among a flock of large black and white birds standing around in the snow. It's not a successful subterfuge, since he sticks like a sore thumb among the penguins, until... Gus remembers--he packed his tuxedo!

Veteran comic author Teresa Bateman's story of a very well-dressed penguin, Gus, the Pilgrim Turkey (Albert Whitman Publishing). With artist Ellen Joy Sasaki's funny watercolor illustrations, this terrified Thanksgiving turkey story is just right for preschoolers and primary students who like a silly holiday story. Share this one with Eve Bunting's classic giggle-getter,A Turkey for Thanksgiving (HMH Clarion Books) and Dav Pilkey's 'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving (Scholastic Press)  (Read my reviews here).