Our World of Dumplings

Ages 4 to 8, Grades P to 3

This delicious story celebrates the many different types of dumplings that exist in our world and how food brings people and cultures together!

My nose leads me from my room, through the kitchen, and out of our apartment. Scents swirl in the stairwell of our building. I can smell garlic sautéing. Ginger simmering. Tomatoes stewing on a stovetop.

An apartment complex is having a dumpling festival, and all the kids are excited to watch and help each family cook up different versions of the delicious treats. From kreplach to khinkali and Johnny cakes to jiao zi, each household has its own way of making dumplings, uniquely hand-crafted and based upon their culture. As the children wrap, cook, and eat all the different types of dumplings, they learn how dumplings are the ultimate labor of love!

Underscoring the power of food to both bring us together and help us celebrate our differences, Our World of Dumplings is a rich story that shows the tender relationship between food and company and its natural ability to create a sense of community-and will leave you hungry for more!

About the Author

Francie Dekker is a youth gardening and nutrition educator in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She was a contributing writer for Edible Milwaukee Magazine, where she wrote a quarterly "Kids Table" column that explored how gardening, food, culture, and youth intersect. In 2016, she received a Food Writing Fellowship from the Culinary Trust. Our World of Dumplings is her debut picture book.

Sarah Jung is the author and illustrator of When Father Comes Home. She was born in Maine, grew up in Vancouver, Canada, and received a BFA in Illustration, Creative Writing and Book Arts from Maryland Institute College of Art. Sarah now resides in Baltimore, Maryland, alongside her friends and their little cat, Remi. Follow her @sarahjungart and on sarahjungart.squarespace.com.