Set in Bali, this book discusses the importance of rice on the island. The illustrations include locals, maps, how the plants grow, the role of other living things, how the rice is harvested, etc. The book also discusses hardships farmers may face, such as ridding the fields of mice who eat the crops.The people of Bali rely heavily on rice, which is the main course for every meal. This background knowledge is written in the beginning of the book, setting the stage for the reader.
Each page, in addition to the informational text, is a poem describing the process of planting and harvesting the rice. These poems added for a light, rhythmic tone. Although this book was slightly long, my students enjoyed the read aloud. We have been talking about how our food gets "from farm to fork", so I've enjoyed watching my children's understanding of how we get our food progress from 'all food comes from the grocery store' to the reality. We've even gone into how not all farms grow the same crop or raise the same livestock. This book granted me the opportunity to also talk about how people live differently all over the world, and in places very far away. This abstract thought is very difficult for my students to understand, but the exposure is important. I would use this book in K or 1st grade and follow up with a project.

Rice Is Life is about how how rice is grown and prepared on the island Bali. Rice is a food that is eating a majority of the time in their everyday life. In the story, the author really goes in dept on how rice is grown and the illustrations are great! I think this story would be great for an older class, especially if your going over different cultures around the world. ( )

FROM LIBRARY CATALOG:
Text and illustrations demonstrate the importance of rice to life on the island of Bali in the country of Indonesia, where rice is consumed for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.