Reviews for Our little kitchen

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

We come together to feed our own in this upbeat picture book.Tamakis latest is a delight for the senses, bursting with bright colors, enticing scents, and effervescent prose. Theres not really a story here, nor much gastronomic wisdomand thats precisely the point. Instead, readers shadow a diverse group of people who come together every Wednesday to prepare a meal for their neighbors using whatever materials are at hand. Their garden is far from perfect, but it yields plenty of produce; leftovers and community contributions fill in the gaps. Whether donated, grown, or saved from the fridge, all foodstuffs are welcomethis is no place for premium ingredients or brand names! The kitchens warmth emanates not only from the oven, but from the cacophony of voices and cascade of culinary noises sustaining it. Its a place for gratitude and camaraderie, not gripes and complaintsa disposition evident in Tamakis singsong, occasionally rhyming first-person plural prose. Onomatopoeic actionsglug glug glug / CHOPCHOPCHOP / Sizzzzzzzzleand volunteers hearty exclamations pop in spreads characterized by Tamakis trademark fluidity and playfulness. Nib-and-ink linework swooshes across the pages, emulating the controlled frenzy and depicting a thoughtfully diverse cast of warmhearted people. Endpapers offer simple recipes for vegetable soup and apple crumble; adults familiar with Lucy Knisley and Samin Nosrat will swoon at the sight of these graphically rendered recipes. An authors note explains the real-life experience that inspired the project. (This book was reviewed digitally with 8-by-21-inch double-page spreads viewed at 53% of actual size.)Simply delectable! (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.


Horn Book
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Our narrator explains, with great enthusiasm and gusto, how "every Wednesday, we come together in this little kitchen" to prepare a communal meal for all who are hungry. Meal prep begins with "what we've got": veggies (some quite imperfect) from the urban garden; whatever's in the fridge ("OH! -- Dunno what this is, but it's GOTTA GO!"); day-old bread; "beans from the food bank? Third week in a row! But it's what we've got, we'll use 'em somehow." A sense of effervescent improvisation pervades the tale, through its cookery details and the text's rhythm and design. We see frequent shifts between main text and dialogue, with speech bubbles barely containing the conversational chatter and even intersecting during "cooperative overlap" (a.k.a. interrupting). Yummy sound effects abound -- the rewarding, drawn-out "Slurp" near the end contains six Ss, six Ls, four Us, five Rs, and four Ps, all uppercase and of varying sizes. The illustrations themselves, "done with a nib and ink" and colored digitally, feature sure-handed black outlines, comics-style, around characters of all ages, shapes, races, religions, abilities, and genders, each of whom exudes vibrancy, warmth, individuality, and purpose. It's no surprise that, per the appended note, the story is based on Tamaki's experiences volunteering at a community kitchen in a gentrifying neighborhood -- with the joyful safe space of the dining room as succor for the longtime denizens: "See you next week!" The endpapers include recipes for vegetable soup (front) and apple crumble (back -- because dessert!). (c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.


Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

We come together to feed our own in this upbeat picture book. Tamaki’s latest is a delight for the senses, bursting with bright colors, enticing scents, and effervescent prose. There’s not really a story here, nor much gastronomic wisdom—and that’s precisely the point. Instead, readers shadow a diverse group of people who come together every Wednesday to prepare a meal for their neighbors using whatever materials are at hand. Their garden is far from perfect, but it yields plenty of produce; leftovers and community contributions fill in the gaps. Whether donated, grown, or saved from the fridge, all foodstuffs are welcome—this is no place for premium ingredients or brand names! The kitchen’s warmth emanates not only from the oven, but from the cacophony of voices and cascade of culinary noises sustaining it. It’s a place for gratitude and camaraderie, not gripes and complaints—a disposition evident in Tamaki’s singsong, occasionally rhyming first-person plural prose. Onomatopoeic actions—“glug glug glug / CHOPCHOPCHOP / Sizzzzzzzzle”—and volunteers’ hearty exclamations pop in spreads characterized by Tamaki’s trademark fluidity and playfulness. Nib-and-ink linework swooshes across the pages, emulating the controlled frenzy and depicting a thoughtfully diverse cast of warmhearted people. Endpapers offer simple recipes for vegetable soup and apple crumble; adults familiar with Lucy Knisley and Samin Nosrat will swoon at the sight of these graphically rendered recipes. An author’s note explains the real-life experience that inspired the project. (This book was reviewed digitally with 8-by-21-inch double-page spreads viewed at 53% of actual size.) Simply delectable! (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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