Brandon Makes Jiǎo Zi (餃子) is a beautiful little story that should be read across the nation!
Jiǎo zi is a dumpling, in case you didn’t know (because I didn’t until the book told me!). Brandon loves dumplings – make them and eat them (mostly eat, obviously). One day, Brandon’s Grandma from China comes to visit and everything becomes super, duper exciting! Mistakes occur along the way, but everything is made to be fun!
Epic positives:
1. The description and quick lesson about Pinyin was super cool! I don’t know much about Chinese characters and Asian languages, so the little lesson was very much appreciated! I’ve always been curious how translations can work, so this totally spiked my interest. I can totally see families bonding over the language barriers, especially if they are learning a new language!
2. This book is really positive. It not only is educational but shows that Brandon could make mistakes and it was able to be fun and not a negative experience. I can totally appreciate that! Kids make mistakes in the kitchen all the time and they should be embraced, not ridiculed!
3. The glossary! I normally am not a super big fan of them, but I liked seeing all of the words used so I could do a little learning myself.
The pictures are also hand drawn and it’s obvious. I think it’s sweet and gives a very homey feel, but this may be a negative for some readers. So – readers beware!
Overall, this is definitely one of my top children’s reads this year! It’s short and sweet, but packed full of adorableness!
Five out of five stars!
Check out this book on:
Goodreads
Amazon.ca
Amazon.com
Indigo
Barnes & Noble
Check out the read-through for this book:
YouTube
You can find out more about the author, Eugenia Chu, by clicking the links below:
Goodreads Author Page – Eugenia Chu
http://eugeniachu.com/
Twitter – @chuauthor
Give me a shout out on Twitter if you read this review! #briarsreviews @ReviewAlholic
And like me on Facebook for more urgent updates! @BriarsReviews on Facebook
Or follow my on Goodreads: Briar’s Reviews on Goodreads
Briar's Reviews 
Thanks for sharing!
LikeLike