Italian – Mom Read It

Fried Rice & Marinara and VOOKS!

Posted on December 2, 2023 by Rosemary Kiladitis

I’ve been catching up on emails, and have been chatting with a publicist who sent me the cutest book link on an app called VOOKS. Have you heard of this? I swear, being away from day-to-day children’s librarianship, I feel so out of the loop (one of the reasons I still fight to keep working on my blog!). VOOKS is a storytime app with animated, read-along narration. It’s adorable! There is a subscription fee for the app, but you can also watch videos for free on their YouTube channel; that’s how I enjoyed Fried Rice & Marinara, a VOOK original story by NFL Network anchor Mike Yam.

Fried Rice & Marinara, by Mike Yam/Illustrated by Laura Dong, (Apr. 2023, VOOK Books),
ISBN: 9781737726951 ($17.99 for a hard copy available)

Inspired by Yam’s cultural heritage: growing up with a Chinese immigrant father from Hong Kong and an Italian mother, this rhyming story celebrates diversity and family. Young Mikey Yam’s fourth birthday is coming up, and he’s got a big choice to make: what kind of food should he have at his party? He loves all the delicious Italian foods on his mom’s side of the family, but there’s also such amazing Chinese food on his dad’s side! What’s it going to be: “Ravioli or Dumplings? Linguine or Lo Mein? All of these options were hurting his brain.” He asks his grandmothers, Bahboo and Nonna, but he’s still not arriving at an easy answer until the most delectable decision of all comes to him: why choose just one? The animation and rhyming narration is fun to listen to, and kids will love the expressive cartoon artwork. The story depicts a multicultural, multigenerational family and friends that come together to celebrate and cook together – Mikey’s friends help create the final dish – and celebrate Mikey’s party and everyone’s rich cultural differences.

Can friendship can make Spiky less prickly?

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Spiky, by Ilaria Guarducci/Translated by Laura Watkinson, (June 2019, Amazon Crossing Kids), $17.99, ISBN: 9781542040433

Ages 4-8

Spiky is one of the new books from Amazon’s new imprint, Amazon Crossing Kids, publishing children’s books in translation. Originally published in Italian, Spiky tells the story of a rather prickly fellow named Spiky. He’s brown and covered with spikes, and he’s a big bully. His spikes keep everyone around him at arm’s length, and he just revels in being mean; he pulls the wings off butterflies, he puts birds in glass jars, and he pokes holes in snail shells, all for the sake of being mean. But one day, his spikes start falling out. Before he knows it, Spiky is now a big, pink, spikeless marshmallow who isn’t scary at all. How the tables have turned! Bernardo, a kind bunny, befriends Spiky and shows him how nice it is to be surrounded by friends, especially when there are no spikes to stand between them. Eventually, Spiky’s spikes come back and he begins to re-embrace the Bad Side, but his heart just isn’t in it anymore. Bernardo still sees his friend under all those spikes, and that kind gesture is all Spiky needs to realize that feeling good is pretty darn awesome.

Spiky is a sweet story about a bully who changes his ways and the difference having one good friend can make. Spiky is raised to be mean – the story even notes that his father sends him to “the best school for badness in the whole country” – giving readers a heads-up, particularly us grown-ups, that children learn what they live. Raised and encouraged to be mean, Spiky’s badness runs unchecked until he finds himself in a vulnerable position. From here, Bernardo the bunny comes in and nudges the story into a sweet one of redemption and friendship, leading Spiky down a very different, upbeat path by showing him kindness.

A cute story for storytime, and offers some good moments for discussion with preschoolers to second graders. Ilaria Guarducci’s Facebook page also offers some adorable Spiky artwork that you can have your kiddos easily create: get some brown (and pink) construction paper, a box of toothpicks, some glue, and voila!

See more of Ilaria Guarducci’s artwork at her blog.

Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Tween Reads

Isabella’s for Real – Honest!

Posted on November 22, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Isabella for Real, by Margie Palatini/Illustrated by LeUyen Pham, (Oct. 2016, HMH Books for Young Readers), $16.99, ISBN: 9780544148468

Recommended for ages 9-13

Isabella Antonelli has a BIG problem. Her cousin made a documentary about her real, slightly wacky, New Jersey Italian-American family for a class. He uploaded it to YouTube, and it’s become a viral sensation. The problem? Isabella’s friends at her new school have heard a very different story, and she’s about to be exposed, BIG TIME.

The book goes back and forth between past and present to give readers the full story, narrated by Isabella. It’s a quick read, a fun, often cackle-worthy, comedy of errors with family members you’ll love as much as your own crazy family. LeUyen Pham’s black and white graphic novel-type interludes take the story off the page, giving us visuals for some of the most hilarious interactions between Isabella, her friends, and family.

This one’s a fun read for middle graders who love some good, humorous writing, and who enjoy a gentle, loving poke at our quirky families. I’d booktalk this with Emma Shevah’s books, Dara Palmer’s Major Drama and Dream On, Amber, which also have fun, dramatic main characters and their multigenerational, multicultural families.

Margie Palatini’s got a fun author website with information about her books, some activities, and contact info.