Experience the Fair Through Books

Last week I mentioned I was attending a media event at the North Carolina State Fair and I was all set to write all about it and share with you my experiences but then a darn migraine hit and folks that migraine took me down for 6 days I did everything I usually do but there was no breaking this one. So I had to regroup and so this week is going to be all about the fair and I will be sharing not only my trip to the fair this week but also the media day event but as always you know I always like to share some books so today I found some books for adults and kids about the fair. But before I share with you my top fair books let’s look at why we should read about the fair.

Books about the fair are an important genre of literature that is a reflection of a cultural institution that has been a part of American life for over two centuries. These books have been published from the 1820s to the present day and deal with topics from the cotton candy to carnival games to traveling shows.

Enjoy!

Fair Lady: Memoirs of a County Fair Manager

I am a fair junkie. Wherever I go, I’m constantly on the alert for the smell of sausage, peppers, and onions. My heart pounds at the distant sight of the Sky Wheel. As it did when I was a kid, the music of a carousel draws me in like a siren’s song. And in my search for the perfect candy apple, I have traveled to many fairs and found that they are truly “snapshots of America.”

About the Book
When Frances Tepper, a mother of three and former 4-H leader, precipitously became executive director of the Monroe County Fair and Recreation Association in 1992, there were few women in what was traditionally a “good ole boys” network. Despite the obstacles stacked against her, she held the position for twenty years before she retired in 2012. With humor, candor, and lots of teachable moments, this memoir tells the true story of how Fran, starting as a bewildered novice, grew what was once called “an embarrassment to the industry” into one of the most innovative fairs in New York State.

County Fair (Little House Picture Book)

I had to put this one in here because most of my childhood was spent reading and watching Little House on the Prairie.

With the My First Little House picture book series, the youngest readers can share in the joy of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books in these illustrated adaptations of the beloved series! 

Adapted from Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Farmer Boy, it’s an exciting day for Almanzo as the Wilder family visits the county fair! There are contests, races, and good things to eat, and Almanzo can’t wait to see what the judges think of his special pumpkin.

Fair Cow

I choose this one because if I could have one farm animal in my life it would be a cow.

Effie dreamed of being a state-fair cow. She loved living on the farm, grazing in the fields, and giving milk every day. But still . . . she dreamed of being beautiful, of billowing blue ribbons and big, bodacious barns. Petunia the pig gives Effie advice on how to become the most beautiful cow and win a ribbon at the state fair. But what Petunia, the other cows, and the judges learn is that no one can fix Effie! Illustrations rendered in acrylic capture the humor and spirit of the story.

Show Your Way To The Top: How To Master Swine Showmanship and Impress County Fair Judges

Of course, I had to include one educational fair book as well.

Are you spending hours on end with your pig, only to place it at the bottom of your class? Have you been trying to win for years just to come up short every time? Is this going to be your first time showing and you can’t seem to find good information anywhere?

This easy-to-read, information-packed book will change your show career forever. You’ll finally master your swine showmanship skills and impress that judge.

Since, you either want to start out right without the bad habits or you’re sick of searching for information that doesn’t help, it’s time to get a hold of some proven systems that work. You’re probably hearing many different opinions and they all seem to contradict each other. Your project leaders are telling you what to do, without telling you how to do it. You want to walk, drive and pen your pig right, but you don’t know how to train him to do it. The judge keeps telling you you’re doing something wrong, but you don’t know what it is or how to improve.

Show Your Way to the Top is the first and last book you will ever need to master your showmanship skills.

And I can’t forget the one that most teachers read around the time of fair in my neck of the woods. The all-time classic

Charlotte’s Web

Since its publication in 1952, Charlotte’s Web has become one of America’s best-loved children’s books. For fifty years, this timeless story of the pig named Wilbur and the wise spider named Charlotte who saved him has continued to warm the hearts of readers everywhere. ( Which leads to me another post I think I will add this weekend which will be movies about the fairs/farm animals it might become my winter edition since most of the time it is too cold to get out)