Dumplings for Lili

by Melissa Iwai

Lili loves to cook baos, and Nai Nai has taught her all the secrets to making them, from kneading the dough lovingly and firmly to being thankful for the strong and healthy ingredients in the filling. But when Nai Nai realizes that they are out of cabbage (Secret #8: line the basket with cabbage leaves!), she sends Lili up to Babcia’s apartment on the sixth floor to get some. Babcia is happy to share her cabbage, but she needs some potatoes for her pierogi. . . .

What follows is a race up and down the stairs as Lili helps all the grandmothers in her building borrow ingredients for different dumplings: Jamaican beef patties, Italian ravioli, Lebanese fatayer, and more.

Genres: Picture Books, Food, Family, Childrens, Cooking, Cultural, Fiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2021

About the author

Melissa Iwai is an award winning author and illustrator of children’s books. Her most recent books are: Gigi and Ojiji (Harper Collins 2022), a Geisel Honor book, Gigi and Ojiji: What's in a Name? (Harper Collins 2023), a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard book, and Dumplings for Lili (Norton Young Readers 2021), a Crystal Kite winner. All of her books may be viewed at: http://www.melissaiwai.com/


View daily work on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/melissaiwai1/

Reviews

[Darla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lili and Nai Nai are making baos, but they need cabbage. . .

So begins this energetic dinner-time tale. When Lili goes up to the 6th floor to get some cabbage from Babcia, she finds out that potatoes are needed for Babcia’s batch of pierogies. Down she goes to the 2nd floor to fetch them from Granma. As you might guess, Granma also needs something. The residents have Lili running up and down the stairs to help each one of the tenants make their special dish. In the end, they all get to share their special dishes on the picnic table outside. Included in the book are tips for making Bao as well as a detailed recipe. A heartwarming story about being a good neighbor and how fun it is to share your special dish with others.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dumplings for Lili Adorable! Follow Lili as she makes her way back and forth, up and down, in her apartment building, fetching ingredients to help her (very diverse group of) neighbors complete dishes from their native countries. Her Nai Nai is making baos, but needs cabbage; Babcia is making perogi and has cabbage but needs potatoes; Granma is making beef patties, she has potatoes but needs garlic; Abuela is making tamales, she has garlic but needs cumin; Nonna is making ravioli but needs olive oil; and Teta is making fatayer and has everything she needs. At the end, the grandmother and honerary grandmothers come together with Lili for a "dumpling party" and there's a special suprise for Lili Mama and Papa come home with her new baby brother. I do wish recipes for ALL the dishes were included, but the Nai Nai's Bao recipe is charmingly written.

[Briar's Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dumplings for Lili by Melissa Iwai is a lovely picture book!

Lili is over the moon when Nai Nai asks her to make baos. There are secrets to making baos though, so pay attention when reading this book! The secrets in this book make me smile, and also show me the incredible journey of making a bao (which I had previously seen in the Disney-Pixar short Bao, but who doesn't want to learn more?!).

This is a must read on my list! It's a fun tale about family and cooking. Who doesn't want a story about bringing people together?! And learning different foods from different cultures is probably the best bonus this book can offer. Learning is fun folks!

The illustrations are also fabulous! I enjoy so many different styles in picture books these days. I love how different everything has gotten. No one seems to follow one distinct look anymore - it's great!

Four out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, W. W. Norton & Company and Norton Young Readers for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

[JADE · Rating 2 out of 5]

Love the illustrations but the storyline seemed all over the place to me. I think it could’ve been better.

My Rating: 2.5 💫

[Elif · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was drooling all over while reading this book, and all I can think now is dumplings! Such a fun and heartwarming story. We need more books and definitely more buildings like the one in this story. The illustrations and the colour palette is exceptional; I want to look at them now and again cause they make me so happy. This will make an adorable gift for all children! Amazing book!

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so glad to have discovered this book because the layers of the book are about community and cooking. I was recently in a panel discussion that had mentioned food as a language and I've always subscribed to that feeling and this children's book is a rendering of this.

A young girl is asked by her grandmother to help with making bao. But she discovers an ingredient she needs is missing in her kitchen. So she asks her granddaughter to go visit another grandmother in the apartment complex to borrow it. So she goes to that grandmother and gets the ingredient and that grandmother is cooking her culturally representative food and she's missing an ingredient. So she asks the girl to get the ingredient from another grandmother and so on until the last grandmother doesn't need an ingredient and she returns to her grandmother. Not only is is about anticipating what will happen next for kid readers, it celebrates the food of specific cultures, and a sense of community that everyone was willing to share. (And shout out to babcias making their pierogis!)

[Debbie Ohi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delicious story about embracing different cultures through food and friendship. This comfort book lifted me up, gave me hope. Also, it made me hungry!

[Michele Knott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this sweet story about all of the cooking that is happening in an apartment building and the community these sweet grandmothers have formed.

[Roben · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delightful story! Lili's Nai Nai asks if she wants to help make bao - a type of Chinese dumpling. Lili LOVES bao. She walks us carefully through the recipe but - Zao Gao (oh no!) - they don't have any cabbage to line the steamer! So Lili goes off in search of cabbage. The elevator in their apartment house is broken so Lili and her dog, Kiki, rush up and down the stairs connecting neighbors with the ingredients they need for their cooking. It turns out that everyone is making dumplings from their own country. Who knew there were so many yummy dumplings? And what are all those dumplings for, anyway? A celebration, maybe?
A great look at how food can bring us together, the recipe for bao is included at the end of the book.

[Vernon Area Public Library KIDS · Rating 5 out of 5]

Age: Kindergarten-2nd grade
Identity: Chinese American
Food: Bao, pierogi, fatayer, tamales, ravioli, Jamaican beef patties

Amazing! Lili helps out all the grandmas in her apartment complex as she bounces from home to home, transporting their desperately needed ingredients to help finish a variety of dumplings. An exciting story for children to follow along with, paired with a fun map, and a great example of helping out your neighbor.

Reviewed by: Miss Kelsey, Youth and School Services, Vernon Area Public Library

[Naura (natsuyuu brainrot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5

Kasian Lili mondar-mandir, naik-turun tangga dimintain tolong ambil ingridients-nya. SUKA INI SHABBY CHIC GITU HIASAN RUMAHNYA, karena shabby chic jadi bintang 4. Btw dedication note-nya di belakang buku dan last line Lili saat gendong adik laki-lakinya yang baru lahir,

"Now I have another little dumpling treasure!"

ITU ADIK KAMU.

[Margaux · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lili is making dumplings with her Nai Nai, and she ends up not only helping her grandmother but all the other grandmothers (from all different backgrounds) along the way. We also learn about dumplings from around the world, which was my favorite part (surprise, surprise).

[Mrs Heidrich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful intergenerational story of Lili making bao with her grandma, but also ending up helping to many others in her building with their cooking of dumplings as well. So many amazing different cultures and their food represented as well! And a great recipe in the back too!

[Spiral Breeze · Rating 5 out of 5]

The ending with the new baby was abrupt and outta place. Like I was digging all the grannies cooking. Reminds me of growing up in the tenements in Queens.

[Sarah Alley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a darling book! I love the tight-knit community the story depicts. I would definitely recommend this book and will consider adding it to my home library collection.

[Lysh · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Thank you to NetGalley and W.W. Norton & Company for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Please note that I am not an own voices reviewer and it is important to read and respond to members of these communities first and foremost*

What a beautiful celebration of multiculturalism and community through the simple dumpling. Lili is staying with her Nai Nai (grandmother) and is very excited because she gets to make Bao Buns! But one of the secrets to Nai Nai's perfect Baos is lining the steamer with cabbage, and she is out of cabbage. Lili must run to the other grandmothers in the building to borrow some Cabbage for their meal, helping each with their own dumpling creations along the way.

I adored the beauty of the illustrations in this text and the simple noting of each grandma's name in their native language to let the reader know their cultural identities. The cultures represented include polish, latina, BIPOC, Italian, Lebanese and Chinese. 

There's also a full recipe included at the end of the books so you can make Nai Nai's special Bao Buns yourself.

I can see this text easily being used in lower primary classrooms to stimulate conversation about community and support the wide range of cultures present amongst the students themselves. Civics and Citizenship units would benefit from the addition of this text.

I recommend this book to children aged 4-7.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute book that teaches children about different foods and languages. When Lili is cooking baos with her Nai Nai and in the recipe for baos in the back of the book, "secrets" are included in the directions to make it more fun for kids. There are also silly cooking descriptions such as letting the ingredients "make friends" and letting the dough "take a "catnap." As Lili visits all the grandmothers in her grandmother's building, words and phrases that mean "hello," "grandmother," "oh no," and "dumpling" are introduced in a variety of languages such as Polish and Arabic. I also enjoyed the map at the end of the book that showed Lili's travels up and down the stairs and what kind of dumplings each grandmother was making and what ingredient they were missing. The ending is sweet, as we find out why Lili has been spending time at her Nai Nai's house.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lili's grandmother is making dumplings with her. But she is out of cabbage, so Lili goes to one of the other grandmothers to see if she can borrow some, and like most progressive stories, such as If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, one action leads to another, and she has to go find other missing ingredients for each grandmother from a multinational apartment building where grandmothers are making tamales on one floor, and ravioli on another.

At the end of the book, they bring all the different dumpling like things down for a celebration. And in the last pages, we get the dumpling recipe as well.

This is such a cute book, introducing children to the different types of pastries with fillings that are so familiar all over the world. we get Fatayer, Beef Patty, Tamale, Pierogi, and Baos. So, we not only learn the names of all the dishes, we learn all the names of grandmother if different countries, as well as important ingredients to each dish, from garlic to potatoes, to cumin.

I think kids will enjoy this, especially because they can attempt to make the Bao after reading about them.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Carol Farrington · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great story for diversity; however it is not appropriate for preschool story time which is what I was previewing it for at this time. The directions for making the dumplings are provided in detail early in the story and the number of places Lili is sent would be overwhelming for my group of kids. For a little bit older kids I do think it would be a great book. Possible activities to go with it would include studying the cultures of the different people in the book and of course making or trying the variety of foods that are made.

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightfully illustrated, filled with color and culture, this one's a lot of fun. Many different food traditions make a type of dumpling--and each one needs a little help from Lili to make the recipes shine.

Veg*n families note: A couple of references to beef in the text. The recipe for bao at the book's conclusion calls for ground meat, but veg families can easily substitute this with the many plant-based grounds on the market today.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If this didn't make me cry with nostalgia! Made me think of my grandparents' apartment in South San Francisco and their wonderful neighbors. I can still remember their names and the sweet treats they made for me and my cousins when we visited.

[Hanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful story about all the grandmothers in an apartment building making their culture's version of dumplings! The young Chinese girl runs up and down the building delivering borrowed ingredients among the residents.

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Lili’s Nai Nai asks her to help make baos, Lili is thrilled. After all, baos are her favorite! She even knows all of the secrets of making the best baos from letting the ingredients make friends to shaking the wok just enough to coaxing the filling into the center of the dough and wrapping it snugly. The final secret is to line the basket with cabbage leaves before steaming them, but Nai Nai discovers that they are out of cabbage. She send Lili to the 6th floor to ask Babcia to lend them some. The elevator is broken, so she and Kiki, her dog, have to take the stairs up five flights. Once there, Babcia has cabbage but needs some potatoes. She asks Lili to see if Granma on 2nd floor has any. Soon Lili is running up and down the stairs to bring all of the grandmothers in the building the ingredients they need. She is finally able to head back to her Nai Nai with the cabbage leaves. The day ends with all of the grandmothers bringing their delicious food to the table. There are pierogi, beef patties, tamales, ravioli, fatayer and of course, baos! There is one last dumpling to come to the table too as a grand surprise.

Set in a 6-story apartment building, this picture book celebrates the shared joy of cooking and how food brings us together. The story includes details of Nai Nai’s secrets for the perfect baos and then quickly changes to become a dash from one grandmother to another to get them their ingredients. Each grandmother talks about what they are going to cook and then uses a native expression of exasperation that they are out of an ingredient. It’s a lovely and fast-paced look at a diverse community in a single building.

The illustrations are bright and warm. Each grandmother’s apartment has touches that show their culture, including masks on a wall, plates on a shelf, woven rugs, and tiles. While each grandmother has a unique apartment, the book works visually as a whole too.

Celebrate diversity and community in this picture book that is sure to make you hungry. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

[April Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really sweet story that will make you hungry! Lili is at her grandmother's apartment, helping her make dumplings, or bao. The way the steps for making the bao are explained is adorable, such as letting the dough take a catnap somewhere warm while making the filling. When the bao are all ready, Nai Nai realizes they have no cabbage leaves to line the steamer basket with, and she sends Lili to a neighbor's apartment on another floor to ask for some cabbage. The elevator is out of order, so Lili takes the stairs. She's able to get the cabbage, but the neighbor needs potatoes for her dumplings, and asks Lili to check with another neighbor. This scenario repeats through five different neighbors from different cultures making five different kinds of dumplings, until finally, poor tired Lili, who's been running up and down the stairs all this time, can get back to her Nai Nai to finish their dumplings. At the end, everyone meets outside to have a dumpling party, and we learn why Lili was at her grandmother's- she has a new baby brother! The story teaches children about foods from different cultures that are similar but unique, and how food is a way for all cultures to come together and celebrate. Following the story, we get Nai Nai recipe for pork bao, which I can't wait to try! The art is colorful and bright, with lots of detail- I especially enjoyed the endpapers, which show the different dumplings in the story. A fun, inclusive book, sure to be enjoyed!

#DumplingsforLili #NetGalley

[S.T. 瑶瑶 · Rating 5 out of 5]

🥟🥟🥟🥟🥟
5 delicious dumplings

I loved this for many reasons.

This is a book about bringing people together through food and celebrating cultural tradition and heritage. I love this theme almost as much as I love food, so of course I'd already be a goner from the get go. That this book features a variety of cultures and each one's version of a dumpling (the new little baby brother being Lili's favorite dumpling at the end... I cried actual tears) made me and my stomach weep.

Iwai brings the themes of family, community and inheriting tradition while also appreciating others' with the beautiful colors she's used in her illustrations. I found the shades of greens, pinks, yellows and blues really added to the warmth and loving atmosphere. I honestly felt like I was in 3rd grade again, getting ready to help my Nainai in the kitchen.

This book made me miss both my Amma and my adoptive Nainai - the first who I lost as a child and the second only a year ago. :(

I'll definitely be acquiring a copy of this for my niece and any other children in my family. 10/10, would highly recommend!

Big thanks to the publisher who gave me an eARC via Edelweiss+.

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[Nicole Devens · Rating 5 out of 5]

In "Dumplings for Lili", a little girl, Lili, is trying to help her grandmother make dumplings. They start by making the dough and the filling but when they try to line the basket with cabbage (to keep it from sticking) they don't have anymore! Lili's grandmother sends her to a neighbor to borrow some cabbage and starts Lili on an adventure up and down the building borrowing and delivering ingredients to their neighbors in the building. Each neighbor is making their own version on dumplings that represent how one food connects many cultures. At the end of the story, all the neighbors come together to share their dumplings in a dumpling party!
I found this story on the Kirkus Reviews website and read it through the Libby App. I loved the illustrations in the story, they looked like sketches with watercolors. The colors were bright and engaging. One thing that I loved about this book was how it showed how all these cultures are connected through food. Each culture has their own version of the dumpling, which I thought was such a great premise for the book. I also really enjoyed being able to read the story, instead of listening to it via a YouTube read aloud.
This book would be a great read aloud for Social Studies, especially for a unit on the cultures of the world. I think that it would work well in K-5 classrooms.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much love and joy wrapped around a story of dumplings and community. Before reading this, I had a very singular idea of what a dumpling was (and it usually went together with chicken). After reading this, my idea of dumplings has expanded! I love that about books; they teach us so many new ways of thinking, they expand our horizons, and they grow us!

I have tried pierogis, ravioli, tamales, Jamaican beef patties (the mild version), and bao. I am on a quest to find a fatayer and experience that kind of dumpling now! I felt for Lili as she went up and down and back again, tracking down the ingredients for all these wonderful foods. I love how the story incorporated and brought together all the communities, in the same way, recipes bring ingredients together. The pictures were colorful, warm, and full of wonderful homey details. This was so fun to read.

When we were reading, Mister didn't always understand all the spices or everything mentioned, so maybe next time we will stop and spell them or visit the kitchen so that he can see what is talked about. He has been helping in the kitchen so he did know so of them and he lit up with those he did know. The recipe at the end is a lovely touch.

[michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story in some ways reminded me of Chik Chak Shabbat, a book I reviewed years ago. It is a story that is contained in one apartment building where each floor houses someone of a different cultural background. In this story, Lili is at her Nai Nai's house making boas, a personal favorite. They take us step by step until step #7 where Nai Nai realizes that they are out of the cabbage needed to steam them. She sends Lili up to the 6th floor to see if Babcia has some. Babcia gives her the cabbage and then sends her to Granma on the 2nd floor for potatoes. The story continues until she has gone up and down the stairs multiple times (elevator is broken) and run errands for everyone as they are making special foods. Later, they all come together in the garden to share a delicious meal. I adore books like this. Books that allow us to preserve our own cultures and share in everyone else's. I also love books about food. There is also a recipe for bao in the back that I might have to try with a vegetarian version.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an electronic ARC from Norton Young Readers through Edelweiss+.
Lili and her grandmother are making Baos. Lily shows readers the steps to make these delicious dumplings but when they get ready to steam them - no cabbage leaves. Lily's grandmother sends her on a mission to borrow a cabbage from one of the other grandmothers in the building. This begins quite the adventure as Lily goes from floor to floor getting ingredients for each person. Readers will appreciate the humor as she has to go up and down the stairs in the six story building. In the end, all of the dumpling styles are cooked and a dinner party is held in the backyard. The final "dumpling" is Lily's new baby brother just home from the hospital.
Iwai captures the various cultures through her descriptions and the brightly colored, highly detailed illustrations. Readers will find themselves relating to at least one of the cultures shown.
The recipe for Baos is included at the end of the story.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last evening a character, a grandfather, in a story was complaining repeatedly about getting old. He did not have one good word to say. Everything was wrong about adding years to your life. By the time the adventure he, his lifelong friend, his grandson and his grandson's friends shared was coming to an end, he remarked to his grandson about the grave error in his previous thinking. He realized getting old was a gift. It is one of the best gifts of all best gifts.


This change in perspective which many elders hold dear and live as a truth allows them to relish their neighbors, friends, and family. For many of them, this joy is expressed in the art of cooking. Dumplings for Lili (Norton Young Readers, an imprint of W. W. Norton & Company, June 1, 2021) written and illustrated by Melissa Iwai is a story of one granddaughter, many grandmothers, and the search for specific ingredients. Which dumpling is the best?

For the full recommendation: https://librariansquest.blogspot.com/...