Books like Potato Pants! — picked by fans

The Whole Whale is a counting book, a delightful, read-aloud rhyming book, and, at its core, it’s a book about making space for everyone, even when it might seem easier to say, “Sorry, there’s no room for you.” The other 99 animals in the book don’t hesitate to make way for their biggest friend by pushing and shoving until… voilà… they arrive at a special surprise—a double fold-out page big enough to fit all 100 different animals (Seriously! 100!). Talk about a page you and your little one can pore over again and again and find something new every time!

As perhaps you can tell from my own book, Rat Fair, I’m a sucker for wordplay, and Chopsticks hits all the right notes. Its subtle playfulness with language makes it eminently re-readable, and I have nothing but respect for its fervent dedication to terrible puns. Not only is Chopsticks light-hearted, funny, and expressively illustrated (who knew a cotton ball could look so concerned?), but at the heart of this fast-paced, cutlery-based romp is the idea that you can be deeply attached to someone you love and also be able to enjoy your own life apart from them. That, in fact, you’re likely to work better as a team because of the time you both take for yourselves.

It's such a sweet story about being yourself.

Bunnybear looks like a bear on the outside but feels like a bunny on the inside. But soon he questions if his feelings are valid. Then he meets another and finds out that he isn't the only one that feels this way and forms a wonderful friendship with Grizzlybun. The illustrations are adorable!

Crab Cake speaks to me as a biologist and as someone who cares deeply about the environment. It has a more serious tone than the other books on the list—but only as serious as a book headlined by a baking crab can be. The illustrations of the seafloor community are detailed, and true facts about sea animals are “baked” right into the text. When the undersea community in the story finds itself on the ugly end of humans’ habit of dumping trash where it’s not wanted, the titular crab uses his penchant for baking cakes to bring the community together to solve the problem.

Potatoes began as a main food staple in the Andes then spread to the rest of the world and especially Ireland where the dependence of the people on it created havoc that lasted generations, and served humanity as an example never to be forgotten. 

This book explains how the potato brought about changes good and bad until today it is difficult to imagine life without it. A Big Mac with no fries is like a latte with no milk. It was introduced into China in the 1600s and by 2006 China’s potato production at 74 million tons is the largest in the world. The Chinese now consume 88 lb (40 kg) per person annually. 

As to its eatability, what more proof do we need than the movie, Martian in which Matt Damon shows us how he happily survived months on it in space. And he did all that without leaving… show more.

Where the Atlas is a very large book compiled by a team of academics, O'Murchadha's smaller volume covers much the same ground.

He provides some context by opening with a portrait of Ireland before the onset of famine and concluding with a picture of Ireland in the years after. It is made human by the many anecdotes featuring the experiences of particular individulals and families from his native County Clare.

O'Murchadha is highly critical of the government's response to the famine, offering scathing critiques of the Poor Law, the Rate-In-Aid Act, and the beaurocratisation of relief, nevertheless his tone is generally well balanced. I regard both the Atlas and O'Murchada's book as essential reading for anyone with a genuine interest in understanding this watershed period in British-Irish relations.

​When I was very small, planting peas in the garden with my grandfather, I felt like a sorcerer's apprentice being initiated into a realm of magic. Carron Brown's Secrets of the Vegetable Garden brings me back to that age of wonder by setting up mysteries to solve. Holding pages up to the sunlight reveals the answers to mysteries and riddles, and shows us what is secretly happening: potatoes growing under the earth, or seeds forming inside a fruit.

This is the book to read if you are young or seeking something for a young reader.

The suffering and endurance of ordinary men women and children during those terrible years is described with empathy and admiration. It is also, as the book description states, "the story of the heroes among the Irish people and how they held on to hope."

If all you know about Prince Edward Island is that it’s a pretty tourist destination, you will be surprised by this book. The author tells the story of PEI in the 20th century with great flair. Along the way, readers learn about the people, events, and influential forces that shaped Island life over that era. We find out not just about seed potatoes, fox farming, ferry boats, and fixed links, but also about the troubles brought by economic depression, outmigration, and regional disparity. Two world wars also figure into the story. In a nutshell, If You're Stronghearted describes both changes and continuity within the distinctive Canadian province. The book features a wonderful selection of images.  

When I first read Tamar's original book, An Everlasting Meal, I knew I had found a kindred home-cook spirit in her. And to be honest with you, I thought that book couldn't be topped. But then she wrote The Everlasting Meal Cookbook!

This cookbook is the definitive guide on how to use up every imaginable leftover in your kitchen so that almost nothing will go to waste. Chances are, when you begin to implement Tamar's leftover recipes, you will see very little going into your kitchen garbage can. You'll gaze upon every scrap, every crumb in your kitchen in a new light.

Next thing you know, you will be taking the heel of a loaf of bread, a sliver of a parmesan rind, and a few vegetables from your crisper (that look a bit past their prime) and turning it all into a dinner that friends and family alike will… show more.