No Turkey? No Worries!

Not having turkey for Thanksgiving? Don't worry! Going sans turkey is nothing to be ashamed of.

This is the message of Duck for Turkey Day by Jacqueline Jules. Tuyet, a young Vietnamese American girl, is upset when she learns that her family will be having duck for Thanksgiving instead of turkey, which she believes is the "rule" for the holiday. Tuyet's disappointment continues on the holiday, despite actually enjoying the duck with spicy sauce with her family. When she returns to school, though, she discovers that she is not alone, and that many of her classmates also did not eat turkey on Thanksgiving.

My daughter pointed out that this book would have come in handy last year when we ate Chinese food with my in-laws last Thanksgiving (see A Stir-fried Thanksgiving). Not being a turkey eater, I was thrilled to eat stir-fries and crab on Thanksgiving, but at the time, my rule-abiding daughter, was not as convinced that it was okay.

Now, my daughter is one year older, and she is not worried about whether or not we'll have turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy.  We'll have a feast, that's for sure--a spring greens salad with cranberries, toasted pine nuts, and goat cheese; a pancetta, kale, and acorn squash risotto; a roasted-to-perfection chicken; an assortment of roasted root vegetables; and a simple yet always delicious apple crumble--but the focus will be on enjoying our time together.   

The message of Duck for Turkey Day resonates with wise words spoken by Marcie on the beloved Thanksgiving animated classic A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving after Peppermint Patty criticizes the Thanksgiving feast (a piece of toast, pretzel sticks, and popcorn) Charlie Brown has prepared, "Thanksgiving is more than eating...We should just be thankful for being together." 


Here's to togetherness and popcorn, toast, duck, or whatever you will be eating on Thursday. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Books for Babies and Toddlers about Chinese Culture

            

As I perused my local library for new books to read my kids, I stumbled upon Round as a Mooncake: a book of shapes (Chronicle Books, 2000) and Red Is a Dragon: a book of colors (Chronicle Books, 2001), written by Roseanne Thong and illustrated by Grace Lin.  Here's a quick review in case you are searching for a good book with themes of Chinese culture for your baby or toddler.

They are two books of a three-part series that introduces basic concepts (shapes, colors, and numbers) to young children in a multi-cultural (Asian and Western) context. I was bummed that my library didn't have the third in this series is One is a Drummer: a book of numbers (Chronicle Books 2003).

With their beautiful illustrations and lilting text, I would have loved to have read these books to my children when they were little.  According to her website, Thong's inspiration for these books was her own daughter, Maya. She wanted to read books about shapes they found in Hong Kong but could find none that fit this description so she wrote Round as a Mooncake. This was followed by Red Is a Dragon, a story about colors, and One is a Drummer, a book about numbers. 

What I love about these books:

• Grace Lin's illustrations. I can't help it. I adore Grace Lin's illustrations; they are a feast for the eyes with vibrant colors, beautiful patterns and scenes full of charming details.
• Basic colors, shapes, and numbers are introduced using things commonly found in Hong Kong, China, or even a Chinese American family: a yellow incense stick, a round rice bowl, one dragon boat.
• The rhyming text is sing-songy (in a good way) and decorated with fun phrases like "crunchy kale" and "a bowl of goldfish."
• At the end of each book is an author's note where Chinese items mentioned in the story are defined and explained, making these books accessible for non-Chinese families as well. 

 Which multi-cultural books do you enjoy reading to your baby or toddler?