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Lunch from Home

Illustrated by Jing Li
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What happens when a child’s favorite packed lunch is met with disparaging comments at the school lunch table?

In a classroom of sandwiches, four students stand out with their homemade, culturally-specific lunches. But before they can dig in and enjoy their favorite foods, their lunches are spoiled by scrunched noses and disgusted reactions from their sandwich-eating classmates.
 
Follow each of the four students as they learn to cope with their first “lunch box moments” in this picture book that encourages empathy and inspires all readers to stand up for their food! Inspired by the “lunch box moments” of four acclaimed chefs, Ray Garcia, Preeti Mistry, Mina Park, and Niki Russ Federman, this heartwarming story reminds us all that one’s food is a reflection of self and an authentic celebration of culture.
Joshua David Stein is a journalist, author, and editor. He has served as the editor at large at Fatherly and Out magazines, the editor in chief of BlackBook and Avenue, and the senior editor at Departures. His work has appeared in The New York TimesNew YorkEsquireGQHemispheres, among many other publications. Previously, Stein was the restaurant critic for the Village Voice and the New York Observer. He is the co-author of Notes from a Young Black Chef with Kwame Onwuachi; Il Buco: Stories & Recipes with Donna Lennard; the Nom Wah Cookbook: Recipes and Stories with Wilson Tang; Why I Cook? with Tom Colicchio; and Vino: The Essential Guide with Joe Campanale. His children’s books include, among others, Can I Eat That?What’s CookingBrick: Who Found Herself in ArchitectureSolitary Animals, and Lunch from Home. He currently lives in Brooklyn with his two sons, Augustus and Achilles. View titles by Joshua David Stein

About

What happens when a child’s favorite packed lunch is met with disparaging comments at the school lunch table?

In a classroom of sandwiches, four students stand out with their homemade, culturally-specific lunches. But before they can dig in and enjoy their favorite foods, their lunches are spoiled by scrunched noses and disgusted reactions from their sandwich-eating classmates.
 
Follow each of the four students as they learn to cope with their first “lunch box moments” in this picture book that encourages empathy and inspires all readers to stand up for their food! Inspired by the “lunch box moments” of four acclaimed chefs, Ray Garcia, Preeti Mistry, Mina Park, and Niki Russ Federman, this heartwarming story reminds us all that one’s food is a reflection of self and an authentic celebration of culture.

Author

Joshua David Stein is a journalist, author, and editor. He has served as the editor at large at Fatherly and Out magazines, the editor in chief of BlackBook and Avenue, and the senior editor at Departures. His work has appeared in The New York TimesNew YorkEsquireGQHemispheres, among many other publications. Previously, Stein was the restaurant critic for the Village Voice and the New York Observer. He is the co-author of Notes from a Young Black Chef with Kwame Onwuachi; Il Buco: Stories & Recipes with Donna Lennard; the Nom Wah Cookbook: Recipes and Stories with Wilson Tang; Why I Cook? with Tom Colicchio; and Vino: The Essential Guide with Joe Campanale. His children’s books include, among others, Can I Eat That?What’s CookingBrick: Who Found Herself in ArchitectureSolitary Animals, and Lunch from Home. He currently lives in Brooklyn with his two sons, Augustus and Achilles. View titles by Joshua David Stein

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