Freedom Soup by Tami Charles. Illustrated by Jacqueline Alcántara. unpgd. Candlewick Press, December10, 2019. 9780763689773. (Review of finished copy courtesy of publisher.)
It was a happy accident that this review of Freedom Soup ended up being published today - on New Year's Day. It was one of the last books read during my push to complete my GR goal yesterday.
It is a snowy New Year's Day in Ti Gran's house and she has decided that her granddaughter, Belle, has a "heart made for cooking." Belle is going to help Ti Gran make Freedom Soup, a Haitian traditional soup that is made each New Year, which also happens to be Haitian Independence Day. Ti Gran is a storyteller and history-keeper. Even though Belle has heard the story before, she relishes hearing it again. Ti Gran's words paint painful pictures on the way to triumph. Illustrations pop off the pages as Belle and Ti Gran bounce to the rhythm of Haitian music as they chop and stir. Little details draw the eye and invite lingering. The text has its own subtle rhythm.
The best picture books transport readers so much so that they inhabit the book. They can feel the warmth and love and can smell the aromas. Freedom Soup is a feast for the eyes and soul. Don't read this book hungry! Even if you're not, you will get hungry reading about how this delectable dish is created. I am so making Freedom Soup this year. A recipe follows at the end along with an author's note. There is just so much to love and celebrate about Freedom Soup - a grandparent's love, cooking and storytelling as tradition and memory, history, and community. Highly recommended!
Nixie Ness: cooking star by Claudia Mills. After-School Superstars series #1. 118 p. Margaret Ferguson Books/ Holiday House, June, 2019. 9780823440931. (Review of arc courtesy of publisher.)
Nixie Ness is one happy third-grader. She loves to bake and baking is doubly fun when she does it with her BFF, Grace. She and Grace have been best friends since they were two and they do everything together. They are in the same class, sit together at lunch, play soccer together on the weekend and, best of all, get to spend each day after school together at Nixie's house until Grace's mom gets home from work. Life couldn't get more perfect.
Then, Nixie's mom gets a job in a bookstore and Nixie learns she'll be attending after-school camp. When she learns that Grace will not be attending camp, Nixie is upset. When she learns that Grace will be going home with Elyse, a classmate, Nixie is devastated. How can they remain best friends? What if Grace becomes best friends with Elyse? How can Nixie get rid of this friend stealer?
Still, she must admit that After-School Superstars is fun. She's teamed with Vera, Nolan and Boogie. When she's there, she can almost forget her troubles. But when Vera makes shy attempts to extend the friendship past after-school camp, Nixie shuts her down out of loyalty to Grace.
Move over Ramona, Junie B. and Clementine. There's a new spunky heroine on the scene. Nixie is spirited and appealing in this gentle story about changing friendship. Elementary readers will relate to Nixie and her humorous and sometimes cringeworthy attempts to save her friendship. The dialogue is spot-on. The unfinished sketches and spot art will add appeal in their finished form. A recipe for Morning Glory Muffins is provided at the end of this satisfying story. Where can I sign up for After-school Superstars camp?
