LOVELL — Ella Sue and the Burlap Bag, the latest book by author Robin Taylor-Chiarello, has recently been announced as the 2021 New York Book Festival Children’s Book Winner. This is not the first time the author has been honored at this festival; she has previously won for her books The Blue Lobster and It Only Takes One Friend. Ella Sue and the Burlap Bag, inspired by the true story of Ella Sue Hartgrove’s childhood as a sharecropper’s daughter, is a story about family, hard work, and perseverance.
Ella Sue grew up in Shelby, North Carolina, and, as an adult, moved to the Newark area of New Jersey to seek more opportunities for herself and her children. This is when she met Robin Taylor-Chiarello. Ella Sue would tell her childhood memories to the author’s son as bedtime stories. Years later, Taylor-Chiarello has memorialized those happy memories into a heartwarming story. Ella Sue and the Burlap Bag tells the story of a young girl and her family of sharecroppers who work diligently to grow the food they need. At the age of six, Ella Sue is considered old enough to help in the fields and is given a burlap bag to fill with cotton. Despite the grueling work, Ella Sue is happy to contribute to her family. At the end of the season, her mother transforms the burlap bag into a dress that Ella Sue proudly wears to church.
Taylor-Chiarello’s story introduces children to a part of our history that is often overlooked. Through Ella Sue and the Burlap Bag, important discussions can be started to help educate our youth while also telling an inspiring story. Reverend Dr. Alveda King, niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., praises Ella Sue as a story portraying family values during an earlier time.
Robin Taylor-Chiarello divides her between Summit, NJ and Center Lovell, ME. Ella Sue and the Burlap Bag is available for purchase through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million, Target, Wal-Mart, Goodreads, and Jabberwocky Toys in Chatham, NJ.
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