Black-Eyed Peas and Hoghead Cheese: A Story of Food, Family, and Freedom

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.\nKnow 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?\nWhile 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.\nA 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!\nFrom School Library Journal\nGr 2–4—Frances is in town visiting her family for the New Year's holiday. She gets to spend the whole day in the kitchen with her grandmother helping cook and listening to the stories behind why her family eats the foods that they do. Along with Frances, readers get to learn about black-eyed peas, hogshead cheese, pecan pralines, and other foods that were originally eaten by slaves out of necessity and are now eaten during celebrations to honor and thank their ancestors for their sacrifice. Armand includes sidebars that give factual information about topics talked about in the story, from the Atlantic Slave Trade to definitions for different foods. Creole words are interspersed through the text, but the narrator sounds them out phonetically. The illustrations are detailed and colorful, inviting readers into the space with Frances and showing off the different foods she and her grandmother make. Back matter includes a recipe for pecan pralines, author's note, sources, and a further reading list. VERDICT Excellent for any collection needing to expand the New Year offerings; display it before the December break.—Jennifer Ritzie