DIM SUM, HERE WE COME!

It’s dim sum time!

Every Sunday, a child’s family meets at a dim sum restaurant, and right from the first page (or even the delectable endpapers), the excitement is palpable. This is going to be a full-on experience. Bright watercolor illustrations outlined lightly with colored pencil offer a charming view of this apparently Chinese extended family of a dozen members. The narrator exudes enthusiasm with expressive dot eyes and a wide mouth as they greet everyone and enter the restaurant. There’s a wait, but Uncle Irvin takes the cousins around the restaurant to see the good-fortune kumquat plant, the good-luck cat statue, and the fish tank. Then it’s time to eat. There’s jasmine tea and carts stacked high with bamboo baskets full of food—too many dim sum options to choose from. Lam’s love of both dim sum and family is infectious, and she deftly weaves cultural details into the story, such as family members tapping their fingers to thank Uncle Jeremy for refilling hot tea for everyone. “Tap tap tap! Tap tap tap! Tapping your finger on the table means thank you.” Grandma also teaches the child to wait their turn for the Lazy Susan. The spread listing every person it passes on its way around is delightfully suspenseful, worth the char siu bun at the end. Every small pleasure of this outing seems thrilling, but there’s also a comfortable ease to this family, shown in all their loving ways. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Delicious.