Official Review: The Kitchen of Many Colours

[Tanaya]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Kitchen of Many Colours" by Sheri-Lynn Kenny.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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The Kitchen of Many Colours is a children’s book by Sheri-Lynn Kenny.

The book follows a young girl named Lara. The story takes place in Canada, as Lara and her parents just moved to Ontario from Newfoundland. They now live in a small town of about 1,000 people. The population is steadily growing as new families move to town because of the new mill. Lara will be attending first grade in the fall. For now, it’s the summer, which is the perfect time for Lara to adjust to her new surroundings and make new friends before school begins.

The story is written in paragraph form and the accompanying illustrations do a fine job in visually portraying the words preceding them. The story itself is just ten pages, excluding the separate pages of illustrations. It moves swiftly while having the chance to include a number of plot points that build off of each other and work well together.

The most prominent aspect of this book is its heavy emphasis on diversity. Lara becomes friends with Max who is from India, Maya from China, Kieran from Ireland, and Asheeka from Jamaica. After a disaster of sorts occurs at Lara’s house, the community comes together to support them in their time of need. It’s a nice, idealistic notion that seems appropriate for a children’s book. But I had mixed feelings about the cultural aspect, which is used as the main motif throughout the book. Everything that we learn about these characters, besides Lara, is related to their culture. It’s nice in theory, but it was disappointing that we didn’t get to see Lara’s friends or the other community members in a way unconnected to their native nationalities, which they seemed wholly defined by in how they are described and in the things they do. We don’t really get to see them just as individuals.

I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. It was well written and well intentioned with a very sweet plot, mostly due to the conclusion that speaks to the title of the book. Even so, I wish that the characters could have been developed outside of their respective backgrounds. But that’s just how I felt about it. As a kid’s book, it’s a fine read that I’m sure many parents and children would find enjoyable. There are lessons, such as on fire safety, that could be particularly helpful. The book could also serve as a conversation starter about having friends of different races or living in a diverse community.

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The Kitchen of Many Colours
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[gali]

Nice review! The book sounds sweet despite it flaws.

[Tanaya]

Yep, that's it in a nutshell.

[anonanemone]

Sounds like an interesting kids' book. I think it would be nice if each of the characters discovered things they had in common in addition to discussing different cultures. Great review as usual, Tanaya!

[Tanaya]

That's a good idea. And thanks!

[Leahaldrich]

Nice review. I agree that it would be nice to see what the children have in common besides their different nationalities.

[Tanaya]

Thanks for the comment!

[bookowlie]

Great review! The heavy emphasis on the diverse cultures seems like it would be a great book for a classroom discussion in kindergarten or 1st grade.

[Tanaya]

Yeah, that seems to be the target audience. So keeping it simple for that age level makes perfect sense. But I critiqued it more so from a mature perspective. For kids, it's a cute, optimistic book.

[Amihan]

Tanaya, thank you for your review. I think the book accomplishes a lot for its target audience in just ten pages, but yes, I would also appreciate a more complex presentation of the characters.

[PashaRu]

Thanks for a good review. The book sounds like it could be beneficial to kids despite its flaws. I like the basic idea/theme. Interestingly, I and another reviewer recently reviewed books by this same author. Looks like you may have gotten the better book(s)!

[Tanaya]

Yeah, I noticed the author uploaded a bunch of books at the same time. Now I'm interested to see your take on the author's work.

[rachel_bruhn]

I'm not sure that the book needs the added details you guys are suggesting. If the purpose of the book is to teach about diversity and show that it doesn't matter where people come from, then I think that purpose is met. This is a children's book and in schools today there is such a focus on diversity and many schools present a diverse group of students. I think this book would help show kids that even if someone dresses differently than you, talks differently than you, or acts differently than you they can still be your friend. I don't think a kid would look at this book and think "I wish Lara would have had more in common with those other kids."

[Tanaya]

I get what you're saying, though I may not have done the best job in presenting the matter as itit portrayed in the book. I didn't want to give away the details that pertain to the ending of the book, which is when I started to have mixed feelings about it.

If anything, this book has got people thinking critically about the matter.

[rachel_bruhn]

Ahhh...then maybe I just need to read the book first.