"How did anyone possibly come up with
the idea to make water fizzy?
Well, from nature itself!
Hm ... come to think of it, we know
someone from a natural spring.
Maybe we ought to ask her!"
This follow-up to Yummy (Random House, 20021) has readers learning about the history of six much-loved foods and their ingredients: cheese, pizza, pickles, soda, easy food, and gelatin. The design for each of the chapters provides an abundance of information about foods that are of interest to the target audience. The graphic novel format adds much to the appeal for middle graders.
Food sprites (Peri, Fee, Fada and Naia) guide readers through a wealth of information and learning as they explore the origins of each food. Beginning with cheese, a world map shows an atlas of cheese history, with numbered spots showing where each cheese originated. Questions are asked, journal entries shown, and science lab explanations are given. Storytimes, interviews, apt descriptions for the variety in cheeses, and a recipe for making your own lead directly to the second chapter; pizza!
This just might prove to be the first chapter that most readers choose for their reading. If so, it must begin with both the ingredients used originally and the breads that provided the base for those first 'pies'. Space is given to the development of the various styles of pizza that are now enjoyed around the world.
"Maybe you want yours PERFECT! As close
to the original as possible. Or maybe you
prefer something with a more familiar or
experimental taste. Delicious and divisive,
pizza started small but truly became a global
phenomenon."
If you like pickles on your pizza, you will happily move right on to the next chapter to learn about the 20 varieties that are popular worldwide. The text in the fourth chapter moves on to discuss the development of cream, ginger, malt, and fruity sodas, before changing focus again to discuss easy foods like canned foods, cream cheese, Velveeta, macaroni pie, KD, condensed soups, spam, instant ramen, budae jjigae, frozen food, and others. Almost all were developed in North America so most readers will find them familiar. Recipes to try are provided.
Finally, it's on to gelatin which has its origins in many parts of the world. I had no idea!
Extremely informative, while never overwhelming for readers, there is much to learn here. The art has real appeal as readers process what the text has to teach. The design keeps readers focused and entertained, and the book itself offers much that would benefit starting a research project. A lengthy bibliography provides needed help. Well-presented, this book is great fun and filled with new learning.
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