I love that this book teaches culture, the unity of a mother and child sharing quality time in the kitchen, and the joy of making a delicious cultural dish.

Mei Mei's Lucky Birthday Noodles is a beautiful, warm story full of the universal joys of a mother's love, a birthday wish and a bowl of homemade goodness. The writing and illustrations make you smile, teach you a few things, and also inspire you start planning your next meal. We look forward to reading what Mei Mei cooks next!

Children will enjoy reading how Mei-Mei makes the birthday noodles with the help of her mom. Readers can then try making noodles themselves with the kid-friendly recipe in the back of the book. Beautiful watercolor illustrations grace each page and show how Mei-Mei celebrates her culture through food. For bicultural families like mine, this book is a great way to keep my daughter’s Chinese heritage alive through her love of reading and cooking. However, the universal themes of family, love, birthdays, traditions and food span across all cultures. As such, this book would be ideal for all children.

Today I get to review a wonderful book that is being released later this summer. The book is called Mei-Mei’s Lucky Birthday Noodles written by Shan-Shan Chen. The book has beautiful illustrations by Heidi Goodman.  I find all the books from Tuttle Publishing so beautifully put together in the stories, illustrations and quality. It is rare that I call books beautiful, but these books really are. This story is a wonderful book for someone wanting to learn about the Chinese culture as well as a book for any child who is adopted.

I love that Goodman’s illustrations compliment the text beautifully. And, Mei-Mei’s 6th birthday cake looks as yummy as the noodle dish! This is a book children of all ages will appreciate. This book is perfect for encouraging families to get in the kitchen and cook together.