Lunch from Home

by Joshua David Stein (Author) Jing Li (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

What happens when a child's favorite packed lunch is met with disparaging comments at the school lunch table?

In a classroom of sandwiches, four students stand out with their homemade, culturally-specific lunches. But before they can dig in and enjoy their favorite foods, their lunches are spoiled by scrunched noses and disgusted reactions from their sandwich-eating classmates.

Follow each of the four students as they learn to cope with their first "lunch box moments" in this picture book that encourages empathy and inspires all readers to stand up for their food! Inspired by the "lunch box moments" of four acclaimed chefs, Ray Garcia, Preeti Mistry, Mina Park, and Niki Russ Federman, this heartwarming story reminds us all that one's food is a reflection of self and an authentic celebration of culture.

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Kirkus Reviews

Bold colors and flavors serve as a reminder to embrace your heritage and all its culinary glory.

Publishers Weekly

The contributors credited in this picture book, Niki Russ Federman, Ray Garcia, Preeti Mistry, and Mina Park, are all professional chefs, but they were also once kids encountering peers--and the "lunchbox moment"--when each brought their family's culture to school in the form of packed lunches. These meals are lovingly described by Stein and depicted in vibrant color by Li in this epicurean picture book. For Preeti, it's "soft dhokla cake, topped with fried spices called vagar, and a side of bright mango pickles"; for Mina, it's gimbap; Niki has an everything bagel with lox; and Ray arrives with a cheese, hot dog, and scrambled egg burrito. Stung by "weird," "stinky," and other judgmental words, the children briefly insist that their families provide only "regular sandwiches" going forward. But monotony, combined with burgeoning identities nurtured in the family kitchen, creates an unstoppable force: the kids not only choose their favorite foods, they become passionate advocates for culinary inclusion, too. Ages 3-6. (Aug.)

Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.
Joshua David Stein
Joshua David Stein is a writer, editor, and podcast host in New York City. He is the editor-at-large at Fatherly and host of The Fatherly Podcast. He is the author of multiple adult books, including Food & Beer (Phaidon), Epicurean Journeys (Rizzoli), the forthcoming To Me He Was Just Dad (Artisan), as well as the co-author of Notes from a Young Black Chef (Knopf). He has also written several children's books, including Can I Eat That?; Brick, Who Found Herself in Architecture; The Ball Book (all Phaidon); and most recently The Invisible Alphabet (Rise x Penguin Workshop). He recently founded The Band Books, a band that performs children's books to music. A longtime media fixture, Stein has been the editor-in-chief of BlackBook magazine, the editor at Black Ink, a senior editor at Departures, the senior editor of Eater, and the editor-at-large at Out magazine and Tasting Table. He is currently a contributing editor at Food & Wine. Stein lives in Brooklyn with his two young sons.

Dominique Ramsey is a freelance illustrator from Atlanta, Georgia, who has a passion for telling stories about animals, nature, and the whimsical-mysteries things in life. Her inspiration comes from animation, video games, music, and children's books that have an animal focus, including the Warrior Cats book series and the Pokémon game franchise. Her inspiration also comes from animals themselves, the spiritual connection they have, their relationship with people, and what they mean to different cultures. Dominique strives for uniqueness, using bright colors, bold lines, shapes, and patterns that can excite and capture the viewer's eye. Her work focuses heavily on symbolism, where she explores themes such as mystery, culture, identity, and the subconscious mind. Her work has been acknowledged by 3x3 magazine, Society of Illustrators, and Creative Quarterly. She received her BFA in illustration from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2020.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780593384459
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Rise X Penguin Workshop
Publication date
August 20, 2022
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV035000 - Juvenile Fiction | School & Education
JUV050000 - Juvenile Fiction | Cooking & Food
JUV074000 - Juvenile Fiction | Diversity & Multicultural
Library of Congress categories
-

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