Plátanos Are Love

February 15, 2023
An ode to a beloved comfort food is also a love letter to family ties. Esme, a dark brown-skinned child with long curly brown hair, and Abuela, who also has dark brown skin, visit the market to buy pl�tanos. When Abuela reminds Esme that pl�tanos are love, the young narrator muses, "I thought they were food. But Abuela says they feed us in more ways than one." Esme receives a brief history lesson during the shopping trip, learning that their ancestors picked pl�tanos from trees long ago. Esme helps Abuela prepare several mouthwatering pl�tano dishes and hears more of their family history as they cook. Esme's ancestors were forbidden from reading, writing, and drawing, so they memorized them and secretly passed the recipes down through generations. The tasty dishes of tostones y patacones, tajadas y maduros, and mang� y fuf� are prepared with love and shared with friends and family. Esme writes the recipes down in a notebook titled "Nuestra Familia's Cookbook" and notes that "Abuela says pl�tanos are our past. I say pl�tanos are our present. And with this book, pl�tanos will always be our future." Text that incorporates unitalicized Spanish throughout and warm and inviting illustrations convey affection for both food and family and will leave readers hungry for pl�tanos. Characters throughout the book read as Afro-Latine. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A cozy story for the stomach and the soul. (glossary, recipes) (Picture book. 4-8)

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February 27, 2023
Cooking plantains with Abuela, young Esme grows to appreciate her family lineage in this intergenerationally focused first-person tale, a double author and illustrator debut that incorporates English and Spanish throughout. Shopping at the market, Esme learns from Abuela that plátanos are more than just food: “They feed us in/ more ways than one.” Finding that “our ancestors picked plátanos de los árboles,” Esme imagines she is “plucking them from high up in the trees,/ like mi familia from long ago.” And Esme transcribes Abuela’s recipes in a notebook while watching her grandmother cook various dishes with the ingredient, learning that their forbears weren’t allowed to read, write, or draw. Rahman’s digital illustrations use bright, warm colors for contemporary spreads and desaturated greens and browns to delineate scenes occurring in the past, contributing to a thoughtful story of legacy. A glossary and plátanos recipes conclude. Characters cue as Afro-Latinx. Ages 4–8.

Starred review from August 25, 2023

PreS-Gr 2-Esme and her abuela cook different dishes with pl�tanos, which can be found in many Latin American cuisines, while bonding over shared history and familial love. Plantains, and all the dishes they are used in, are delicious, but they mean more to Esme's family and culture than something to eat-"Abuela says they feed us in more ways than one." The grandmother shares with Esme and her little sister how plantains are the food of their ancestors; recipes were passed down in secret, because the formerly enslaved weren't allowed to read or write. The trio make tostones, maduros, and mang� for family and friends, and the love that goes into making each meal can be felt in every word and image in this joyous work. Sprinkled throughout with Spanish words, the narrative is lyrical and filled with fun food words that often appear in a different font and beg to be read aloud. The Spanglish isn't awkward, keeping in line with Spanish-language syntax. The illustrations are luminous, with the warm browns and yellows of the cooked pl�tanos and the greens of the peels as a motif. Tropical pinks and blues also shine through. The skin color of the characters are shades of brown, and the little girl's family members' different hair textures and hair styles reflect the diversity of Latin America. Recipes for the three dishes mentioned in the book are included in the back matter in addition to a glossary. VERDICT A stunning, must-have picture book about food, community, and love.-Shelley M. Diaz

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