[Yum Yum Dim Sum] (By: Amy Wilson Sanger) [published: October, 2003]

by Amy Wilson Sanger

Plates and bamboo steamers come, each with a taste or two! From sticky rice to sesame balls, tasty treats await young readers in this colorful, rhyming ode to Chinese cuisine. With pages full of tummy-tempting foods, the books in the World Snacks series are a delicious way to introduce even the littlest eaters to cuisines from all around the globe.

Genres: Picture Books, Food, China, Childrens, Asian Literature, Fiction, Kids

Hardcover

First published August 30, 2003

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book rhymes and talked about popular dim sum. The bright colors kept the interest of my baby. I loved that it has a glossary at the back so I could learn the names of new food to try! Haha

[Lu · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book because you can learn about different kinds of food - What it’s called and what it looks like. I think it’s a good introduction to Chinese food. I would have liked it to have the tones because I’m pretty sure these are the mandarin names for the food and I feel like it would have been more beneficial to have the four tone lines so that we know that we are reading it correctly.

These are the foods you learn about:
Oolong tea
Ha gau - steamed shrimp dumpling
Scallion pancake
Dau fu - tofu
Siu mai - a basket, shaped dumpling of minced pork, shrimp, and mushrooms
Jing cha Siu bau - steamed pork bun
Sticky rice
Spring roll
Sesame ball
Don tot - a small egg custard tart

[Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cute! I was so excited when I found this book at the thrift store--I love the rhymes and the glossary with all the dim sum dishes so I can properly pronounce new items next time I go!

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would have given it a 5, but I'm always hungry after reading it ;) Love the art.

[Angelica · Rating 4 out of 5]

We got this book a year ago from a friend but Au has never really taken to it. Only today (at 16 months) did she choose it from the shelf and sit through the whole thing!

[Sivyu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute board book about dim sum with a glossary. The pictures are images of mixed media with paper cut outs, fabric, and actual porcelain spoon.

[Karla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great multicultural piece for preschool

[Angelique Loeffler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute board book. Great mixed media collages that provide visual context to the new vocabulary. Glossary on the back cover to describe each new food dish.

[Mort's Kids · Rating 3 out of 5]

I assum "My First Book of Sushi" was a smashing success and so this is the sequel. Same idea, same great art, but the wordplay not nearly as well-executed.

[Felice Lam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute drawings, easy text, and even a simple glossary at the end of the book.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read to Rose. Loved the dedication!

[Aurelia S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

We got this book a year ago from a friend but Au has never really taken to it. Only today (at 16 months) did she choose it from the shelf and sit through the whole thing!

[Mahrya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sanger, Amy Wilson, Yum Yum Dim Sum, Tricycle Press, 16 pgs., board book.

Description: Sanger describes the parts of a dim sum meal for young children. She uses rhymes to introduce children to the names of various dishes.

Review: Yum Yum Dim Sum creatively introduces young kids to the ritual of dim sum by using pictures of fabrics, paper and paint to portray the food. With purple paint oozing through a steamed bun made of gauze, the dim sum doesn't look much like real food. Rather, it has the look of something made by a kid. To adult eyes, the dim sum may look a little unappealing and strange, but portraying it in this way for pre-schoolers is quite effective. After reading this book, kids can associate dim sum with a fun, interactive art project, which may lead them to appreciate the food.

The text of Yum Yum Dim Sum is too wordy for infants, but it serves as nice introduction to foreign language words for toddlers. The book is written in rhyme, which gives adult readers clues on how to pronounce the Chinese words, which may be unfamiliar to them.

Professional Reviews:
Gallagher, Genevive (2006). "Let's Nosh/Yum Yum Dim Sum/First Book of Sushi," School Library Journal, vol. 52, no. 7.

In Gallagher's very short review, she states that this book introduces children to tastes that may be unfamiliar to them. I agree with this Gallagher's assessment. Sanger has done a great job of describing the food in a way that is appealing to kids.

Gallagher, Genevive (2003). "Yum Yum Dim Sum: Review," School Library Journal, vol. 50, no. 1, p. 106.

In this longer review, Gallagher describes the weird and interesting collages in greater detail. She also makes note of the fact that there is no pronunciation guide for this book. I agree with Gallagher that the collages make this book a very rich and interactive experience for kids. I don't think that a pronunciation guide is necessary, however, because the rhyme scheme implies the correct way to pronounce the Chinese words.

[Josiah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like this book. The idea of writing a board book about foreign cuisine so the concept is accessible to pre-readers is creative and adventurous, showing a willingness to help educate toddlers on unfamiliar subjects even if the books will never be runaway bestsellers. The best use for Yum Yum Dim Sum, however, may be for Chinese immigrant families with young children, who want to make sure their babies don't grow up in the U.S. without some familiarity with the culture of their parents' native land. Who would want their own children to grow up missing out on the "little bits of heart" their home country can give? With that as the goal, I can see this book being effective, providing basic knowledge of Chinese foodstuffs accompanied by a cheerful, bouncy rhyming scheme, and for that reason I would give Yum Yum Dim Sum one and a half stars.

Amy Wilson Sanger does a nice job selecting Chinese foods to write about that are both standard restaurant fare as well as slightly more exotic. I've been a lover of Chinese food for most of my life, but I hadn't heard of all the foods presented in this book.The glossary of terms on the book's back page is a good help, though it's the first time I can ever recall reading a board book that included a glossary. Readers of all types should find Yum Yum Dim Sum an amusing diversion.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hungry again...

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

i have this as a board book. fun rhymes to either expand a child's understanding of this delicious chinese food or to provide a child with the opportunity to see his/her own culture in print! either way, priceless. found this book at reading terminal market in philadelphia. plan to send it home as a "family fun" book.

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking for a book to introduce preschoolers to ethnic food? Yum Yum Dim Sum is a good choice. With Ehlert-like illustration/montage and fun rhymes, "weird" food becomes appealing. Sturdy board book pages makes it nearly indestructible, so bring the volume along with you to the restaurant for comparison!

[Earl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amy Wilson Sanger gives young readers a taste of international cuisine with her World Snacks series. Fun rhyming text is paired with mixed media illustrations. Each book either has a pronunciation guide or a description of each food that's talked about. These books are great to include in a library with a focus on different cultures.

[Rebekah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book for my father in law for father's day the year my husband and I got engaged, because there is nothing my father in law loves to eat more than dim sum. It's a cute little rhyming board book and a lot of fun to read to children.

[Angelina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! It was a gift for my daughter, and we have read it over and over again. It's so exciting for her to read about the items that we see on the dim sum cart. Such a cute and creative book.

[Whirl Girl · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute, rhyming exposure to dim sum. The Whirl Girl never got into this one too much, probably partly because it's a board book and it felt like a baby book to her. I think it would be a fun one to bring to a Chinese restaurant to read there.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A board book full of Chinese treats. I really liked the mixed media illustrations; they looked good enough to eat! Also, the food names are all defined on the back cover including what's in each dish and its flavor.

[Annie Dang · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun fun book I got to read to my nephew, Alex. It contains cute lines such as: my my shu mai, why do I love you so?

[Betty Huber · Rating 3 out of 5]

You gotta love a children's book about dim sum. It's totally random and weird. The words are not that clever, but the whole idea of this book cracks me up.

[Danielle McNamara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute book.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite of the World Snacks series, and great to bring with you for first timers at dim sum! Mmmmm don tots!

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Year One Point Five Plus: It's "hot!" Our little one likes to repeat facially expressive and easy, fun-sounding words. Of course, reading it also makes me very hungry for dim sum.

[Erica Deb]

Funny little book. I love dim sum.

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute book with great pictures and bouncy rhymes! We love to go for dim sum so we talked about the book and going out to eat, picking what we eat off the cart, and using chopsticks. I'm not going to reduce the star rating because it made me hungry, but it did ;) My daughter also pretended to drink the tea, which was totes adorbs.