THE TAKEOUT

A Filipino American girl endeavors to save her family’s livelihood with a little bit of magic.

Twelve-year-old Mila Pascual and her dad help run the Banana Leaf, a Filipino Indian fusion food truck they own with their friends Mr. Ram and his nephew, Ajay, in Coral Beach, California. Following their recent move from suburban Los Angeles, Mila’s adjusting to being “the only chubby, short-black-haired, dark-brown-skinned Asian girl in a sea of beach mansion Barbies.” Her sister, Catalina, is attending college in LA, and her mom is caring for Mila’s grandfather in the Philippines. Mila loves inventing new recipes but feels less certain of her abilities with the albularyo, or folk healer, skills passed down through her mother’s line. Trouble comes when TV celebrity chefs Chip and Chaz, Mila’s idols, open their own Filipino and Indian restaurant in town—with menu items exactly matching the Banana Leaf’s. Mila and Ajay’s suspicions of sabotage are confirmed by a sudden health department inspection of the food truck following an anonymous complaint. The friends’ sleuthing also reveals the celebrities’ past shady behavior. Mila’s albularyo potions might help save the day, if only she can believe enough in the magic she creates to make it work. Badua sensitively explores Mila’s struggles with cultural identity and a sense of belonging in relation to both family and peers, particularly as her experiences with marginalization diverge from Catalina’s. The ending neatly ties up all the loose ends.

A magical and delicious read that’s filled with love.