Book Review: Try It! How Frieda Caplan Changed the Way We Eat by Mara Rockliff

Alexandra Adlawan’s

Book Title & Alexandra's Review

Try It! How Frieda Caplan Changed the Way We Eat by Mara Rockliff

Rated E for Everyone

Meet fearless Frieda Caplan – the produce pioneer who changed the way Americans eat by introducing exciting new fruits and vegetables, from baby carrots to blood oranges to kiwisin this brightly illustrated nonfiction picture book!

Frieda Caplan is so cool! I am so glad this book exists so that more people can learn about this remarkable woman. Plus, she loved wearing purple, so shes a woman after my own heart.

I didnt care for the drawing style used in the book. The fruits and vegetables look fine, but the people do not look good.

This book features so many different fruits and vegetables, some weird-looking and some with funny names. Here are some pictures of a few of the exotic fruits and vegetables Frieda sold:

Top: cherimoya, kiwano (horned melon)

Middle: dragon fruit, star fruit

Bottom: finger limes, Buddhas hand

I couldnt believe it when the story mentioned finger limes. My dad has a finger lime tree in the backyard that hes trying to grow more of because they are so rare. Hes currently sharing them with the neighborhood but is hoping to sell them at some point.

After reading this book, I went online to learn more and found a few YouTube videos that I would like to share.

Remembering Frieda Caplan, the exotic fruit lady: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV05ndCKhEg

Frieda Caplan on Letterman, February 12, 1987: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHA0rVGwudk

Be sure to read the page at the back of the book that gives a more in-depth and detailed history of Friedas life.