This book is about a father and son who spend their Saturday together working by doing lawn work. The father tells the son that the water jug is special because when it is empty, they know it is time to go home. The son spends the first half of the day drinking water and giving it to animals, but later, they run out of water. The father tells him that they still have a few more houses to do and that the water was important and shouldn't be wasted. I think that this book would be great to have in the classroom for 2nd grade. This could be great for a descriptive writing lesson by writing about their weekends.

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Jesus is excited to help Papa at work, and even more excited about the magical water-jug clock (one of those ubiquitous orange 5-gallon water coolers with a white top) that will tell them when it's time to go home. Jesus draws a clock face on it, and is generous with drinking water for himself, his Papa, and the animals they encounter as they go from house to house. When the jug is empty and Jesus announces it's time to go home, Papa kindly brings him back to reality: "Mijo, it's only 10:30 in the morning, and we still have eleven more houses to do before the workday is over. It's not time to go home, at all....The water jug isn't really a magical clock...We can't go home just because it's empty." Jesus only freaks out a little before accepting his Papa's explanation that he is trying to make work fun ("you're my partner, but you're also my kid"), and he is not fired from the family business. They get more water and finish their work, and Jesus realizes, "Time and water are precious. We don't want to waste them."

See also: The Paper Kingdom ( )

This was an interesting read. Papa and son go to work on a Saturday. They have many yards that they have to tend and Papa tells the son that they can tell time by the water jug. When the water jug is empty, they get to go home. However, son did a little bit more with water than drink it. He splashes his back, he waters the pets, and when the water jug is empty it’s only 10:30 am papa has to admit that it’s not a magical water jug. It was just a way to make the day a fun adventure for Papa and son. This book is quite lovely and very smart. It shows a life of hard work, and that that work has to get done. I love this book and I love the illustrations that also prove you don’t have to color in the lines to make a great art. ( )