Celebrate Grandparents and Their Food Traditions with these Deliciously Diverse Children's Books
- Helping Kids Rise
- Aug 13, 2022
- 9 min read
Updated: Sep 7, 2024
Grandparents often introduce us to foods that become beloved family staples, passing down recipes that not only fill our plates but also connect us to our heritage and family traditions.
To celebrate these heartwarming moments, we’ve gathered a collection of diverse children's books that highlight the delicious stories of grandparents and the special foods they share with their loved ones. These books are sure to inspire conversations about family, culture, and the traditions that bring us all together at the table. They're perfect for Grandparent's Day or anytime. Happy reading!
For your convenience, we've included the publisher's descriptions with each book.
Accompanied by Ken Daley's vibrant, sun-soaked artwork, Sadé Smith's debut picture book Granny's Kitchen is the perfect readaloud for budding chefs everywhere. Shelly-Ann lives with her Granny on the beautiful island of Jamaica. When Shelly-Ann becomes hungry, she asks her Granny for something to eat. Granny tells her "Gyal, you betta can cook!" and teaches Shelly-Ann how to get in touch with her Jamaican roots through the process of cooking.
As Shelly-Ann tries each recipe, everything goes wrong. But when Granny is too tired to cook one morning, Shelly-Ann will have to find the courage to try one more time and prepare the perfect Jamaican breakfast.
The author of Nigel and the Moon, delivers a tender intergenerational story inspired by his childhood in the rural south. Here's a farm stand that represents the importance of family, community, and hope.
Every stand has a story.
This one is mine.
Saturday is for harvesting. And one little boy is excited to work alongside his Papa as they collect eggs, plums, peppers and pumpkins to sell at their stand in the farmer's market. Of course, it's more than a farmer's market. Papa knows each customer's order, from Ms. Rosa's pumpkins to Mr. Johnny's peppers. And when Papa can't make it to the stand, his community gathers around him, with dishes made of his own produce.
Heartwarming illustrations complement the lyrical text in this poignant picture book that reveals a family's pride in their work and reminds us to harvest love and hope from those around us.
Yoomi loves Grandma's cooking--except for stinky, spicy kimchi, the pickled cabbage condiment served at Korean meals.
You can't eat it because you're a baby, her brothers tease. And they don't play with babies. Determined to prove she's not a baby, Yoomi tries to find a way to make kimchi taste better--but not even ice cream can help. Luckily, Grandma has a good idea, and soon everyone has a new food to enjoy.
Celebrating family, food, and growing up, this story about a Korean-American family will appeal to picky eaters and budding foodies alike. Aram Kim's lively art is filled with expressive characters and meticulous details--and of course, mouth-watering illustrations of traditional Korean dishes and ingredients.
Backmatter includes information about kimchi and how it's made, and best of all, a recipe for Grandma's kimchi pancakes to try yourself! (For more about Yoomi and her family, don't miss Let's Go to Taekwondo! by Aram Kim.)
This enchanting story features the mystery of a grandmother's secret recipe, a seek-and-find of healing plants, and bilingual words for young readers.
Luna and her little brother Sol are out to solve a mystery! They suspect that their grandmother uses magic to create her remedies because she says that she uses a "magic" ingredient.
At the beginning of the story Luna and Sol catch colds so their grandmother makes a healing soup. Luna overhears Nana singing a classic Spanish children's song about frog tails while cooking the soup, so Luna secretly thinks that frogs are the magic ingredient. The children explore the enchanted garden in search of frogs until it is time to eat, in which Nana reveals the real secret ingredient. Can you guess what it is?
This sweet semi-bilingual story includes a seek-and-find of traditional plants used in curanderismo and includes the recipe for Nana's magic soup!
Written by renowned healer Felicia Cocotzin Ruiz, Nana Lupita and the Magic Sopita is inspired the author's grandmother, who was a curandera (a traditional healer of Mexican heritage).
Theater pioneer Will Power inspires families to connect through healthy eating choices, vegan soul food, and community in this heartwarming story of a boy's love for his grandmother--and good food! Includes a vegan recipe!
Can healthy food be delicious food, too? A young boy helps us discover that yes, it can! Nana's New Soul Food follows this energetic boy on an adventure with his mom to find healthy food in his neighborhood. Motivated by his love for his nana, who has to change the way she eats because of her health, the boy rediscovers his neighborhood while finding tasty vegan soul food.
Award-winning playwright, pioneer of hip-hop theater, and performer Will Power injects masterful rhythm into this uplifting story of family and community, which teaches us that healthy food can be a joy. The pages are graced with beautiful, vibrant illustrations from Coretta Scott King Award Honor and Caldecott Honor illustrator R. Gregory Christie, who captures the loving relationships within a family as they connect through their mission to make better eating choices. Back matter includes a fun recipe for Mango-Coconut-Lime Ice Pops courtesy of Chef Bryant Terry, along with a letter from Will Power.
A stunning picture book debut, showcasing the love between grandparents and grandchildren, the challenges of memory loss, and the joy that sweet reminders of a faraway home can bring, from award-winning, bestselling author Thanhhà Lại.
This sweet and emotional picture book will resonate with readers who love A Big Mooncake for Little Star, Ladder to the Moon, and Thank You, Omu!
An's grandmother Bà sometimes gets trapped in her cloudy memories. An and her grandfather, Ông, come up with a plan to bring her back to a happy moment: they grow gấc fruits so they can make xôi gấc, Bà's favorite dish from her wedding in Việt Nam many years ago.
An and Ông work together in the garden, nurturing the gấc seeds. They must be patient and wait for the seeds to grow, flower, and turn into fruit. When the xôi gấc is finally ready, An is hopeful that her grandmother will remember her wedding wish with Ông: hundred years of happiness.
Striking and vivid illustrations bring this tender story of a loving, intergenerational Vietnamese family to life.
Neela loves cooking with her amma (mama)and writing down the recipes in her notebook. It makes her feel closer to her paati (grandma) who lives far away in India. On Saturdays, Neela and Amma go to the green market and today they are buying tomatoes to make Paati's famous sauce. But first, Neela needs to learn about all the different kinds of tomatoes they can pick from. And as Neela and Amma cook together, they find a way for Paati to share in both the love and the flavors of the day.
Bestselling author and host of Bravo's Top Chef and Hulu's Taste the Nation Padma Lakshmi takes young readers on an intergenerational journey full of delicious flavors and fun food facts that celebrates a family's treasured recipes. And Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal brings this circle of women to life with vivid detail and warmth. Tomatoes for Neela lovingly affirms how we can connect to other cultures, as well as to our own, through food.
In this remarkable author-illustrator debut that's perfect for fans of Last Stop on Market Street and Extra Yarn, a generous woman is rewarded by her community.
Everyone in the neighborhood dreams of a taste of Omu's delicious stew One by one, they follow their noses toward the scrumptious scent. And one by one, Omu offers a portion of her meal. Soon the pot is empty. Has she been so generous that she has nothing left for herself?
Debut author-illustrator Oge Mora brings to life a heartwarming story of sharing and community in colorful cut-paper designs as luscious as Omu's stew, with an extra serving of love. An author's note explains that Omu (pronounced AH-moo) means queen in the Igbo language of her parents, but growing up, she used it to mean Grandma. This book was inspired by the strong female role models in Oge Mora's life.
Join the celebration in the kitchen as a family makes their traditional New Year's soup -- and shares the story of how Haitian independence came to be.
The shake-shake of maracas vibrates down to my toes.
Ti Gran's feet tap-tap to the rhythm.
Every year, Haitians all over the world ring in the new year by eating a special soup, a tradition dating back to the Haitian Revolution. This year, Ti Gran is teaching Belle how to make the soup -- Freedom Soup -- just like she was taught when she was a little girl. Together, they dance and clap as they prepare the holiday feast, and Ti Gran tells Belle about the history of the soup, the history of Belle's family, and the history of Haiti, where Belle's family is from. In this celebration of cultural traditions passed from one generation to the next, Jacqueline Alcántara's lush illustrations bring to life both Belle's story and the story of the Haitian Revolution. Tami Charles's lyrical text, as accessible as it is sensory, makes for a tale that readers will enjoy to the last drop.
Meena is excited because today she's going to Nanu's house to drink tea and eat treats.
When Meena gets there, she's ready to get started...but her nanu tells her it's not time yet. Today they're going to have a very special Bengali tea called doodh cha, and they are going to make it together.
First, they harvest some ingredients from the garden. Then they head inside to prepare. Meena's tummy is rumbling as she smells her grandmother's freshly baked samosas and spice cake, but she helps crush the cardamom and cloves and learns when to add the milk, sugar and tea. While they're waiting for the doodh cha to be done, Nanu shares memories of her past in Bangladesh as they look at old photos, paint pictures and set the table. And when the doodh cha is finally ready, it's just as delicious as Nanu had promised. Nanu was right: "It always tastes better when we make it together."
Included in this book inspired by author Farida Zaman's own visits with her grandmother is Farida's family doodh cha recipe.
In this simple, touching picture book about the healing power of a loving community, a girl's grandpa and her neighbors help her grow an olive tree in a war-torn land.
Salam's grandpa says that olive trees are strong and that their roots run deep in their Palestinian land. They connect everyone--from the farmer who presses the olives into oil to the baker who uses the oil in his taboon.
Salam plants her own seed and is eager to see it grow. She waits... she waters... she asks the seed to hurry... until finally...a sprout! But one day soldiers come and destroy everything in their path...including Salam's new olive tree. Salam is crushed--though she doesn't have to worry. Her grandpa gathers their neighbors and, together, they plant olive trees as far as the eye can see.
With spare, sensitive prose and gentle illustrations, debut author-illustrator Hazar Elbayya delivers a powerful story about the beauty of the olive tree and the importance of community in the face of hardship.
In Peaches, a hopeful multigenerational story of love and healing from author Gabriele Davis and illustrator Kim Holt, a girl holds her mother's memory close while carrying on an important family tradition: making peach cobbler together.
Summer Sundays begin with picking.
Rosy-ripe peaches dipping low to the ground,
Sun-warmed and soft like Grandma's lap.
Side by side with Daddy and Grandma, a young girl is determined to take part in her family's tradition of baking the perfect peach cobbler--just like her mama used to. From picking fruit to stirring and mixing to kneading the dough, it's a little bit messy. But with sure hands to guide the girl step-by-step--and her mother's memory hanging sweet in the air--she has the recipe for making Mama proud.
This warmhearted and ultimately hopeful picture book shows that with a house full of love, everything can feel peach-perfect.
A little girl helping her grandmother prepare a holiday meal learns about the origins of soul food in this powerful picture book that celebrates African American cuisine and identity from an award-winning author.
Know what I like most about Grandma's kitchen?
More than jambalaya? More than sweet potato pie? Even more than pralines?
Grandma's stories! Every meal Grandma cooks comes with a story.
What will today's story be?
While visiting her grandma in Louisiana, nine-year-old Frances is excited to help prepare the New Year's Day meal. She listens as Grandma tells stories--dating back to the Atlantic Slave Trade--about the food for their feast. Through these stories, Frances learns not only about the ingredients and the dishes they are making but about her ancestors and their history as well.
A celebration of the stories that connect us, this picture book urges us to think about the foods we eat and why we eat them. This book was inspired by the author's own childhood and includes her family's very own recipe for pralines in the back!
MORE BOOKS ABOUT FOOD, FAMILY, AND CULTURE IN OUR BOOKSHOP
VIDEO READ ALONG
Read along with author and illustrator Aram Kim on this episode of Read Out Loud on Governors Island. In No Kimchi for Me! follow Yoomi as she tries to find a way to eat kimchi! But will she find a way to eat the food that she dislikes so much? Read along to find out and discover a secret kimchi pancake recipe!
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