One Can
A story of giving and receiving, One Can by Lana Button, Eric Walters and Isabelle Malenfant shows readers that we never know everyone’s story.
A school is having a canned food drive, like many do when the weather starts to cool. The child is very excited to bring a can of their favourite, Zoodelicious, to donate. The class achieves their 100 cans and everyone celebrates but a few weeks later, that same can of Zoodelicious ends up back at the child’s house after their mother brings home the groceries. The child slowly discovers that for right now, they are the people in need but instead of looking to receive more, the child looks to continue to give.
Many readers understand the concept of giving. I can’t think of a fall or winter season when there hasn’t been a school or community run food drive. It is a simple way that young children can be involved in community care. I love the twist in this story, how the can comes back to the child and the slow realization that their family is one of the families in need. Most stories about giving are quite clear, either the character is one of the givers or one of the receivers. In this story, readers are just as surprised as the main character to learn that they are in need. It demonstrates for readers that it is never obvious who the people in need really are, that we can all be in need at various points in our lives and by caring for each other, we can also be the givers too.
I love how the child in the story, after realizing they are “in need”, they turn around and continue to give. They got a new pair of mittens and in turn, donated their old mittens, perfect for making snowballs, to someone who could use them. It’s truly a story of care and the capacity for beauty and kindness that children possess and a reminder to the adults reading this story to the children, to discover that part of them again if it has been lost.
Isabelle Malenfant’s illustrations are simple like the story but speak volumes to the idea that being in need is not obvious, that people in need look just like our friends and neighbours, at school and in our community. The muted colour palette and sincere characters create a warm and inviting entry into the story. It’s a fabulous representation of the real world.
