Pei’s Pineapple Cakes by Crystal Z. Lee: A review by Fran Lewis (Just Reviews Blog)
Imagine walking into a bakery filled with delicious cakes. Pei is going to visit her grandmothers bakery and work there. Her mother flashes her journalist badge and Pei has no idea about the quest she’s about to go on. This is going to be exciting and what she encounters real Taiwanese culture and wait until you see the illustrations I’ve included so you can take the journey too.
Pei’s Amah ,
her grandmother is excited because she make some pineapple cakes for her. Then they vanished and who could have taken them? Amah gasped where are they she just baked the batch of feglisu?
There was a fenglisu wrapper on the floor . A scent is being picked up and she and Amah are headed for the Hakka- style Formosa Tea House.
Wait until she sees the inside of this tea house. Jars are labeled along the walls and Aunt Tia is grinding long tea leaves. Thunder Tea: Wow
Will Pei try?
Then wait until you see for yourself what Amah teaches her to do and how she guides her to make her first let cha! Then oh my a crash!
The author keeps Pei in motion along with Amah and she explains the baskets. Told in English and Mandarin with illustrations that make it come to life.
Things are great when handmade and what does Pei notice on a basket ? The basket weavers wait until you see what she gets. Where do they go next? Uncle Kang is writing a scroll why? Calligraphy always wanted to learn this skill.
Bench in disarray and what got in the brushes?
Where is he leading them now as Dingding seems to be creating the tour. Wow wait until you see what she experiences next. Would you be excited about a a puppet show?
As
The puppets come alive in music and told in Taiwanese dialogue and wait until you see the costumes. Who likes which ones? Look at what a monkey does. Will they get it back? Why is Pei sad and what does she get for trying to hep the puppet man?
What happens at the end brings us back to a surprise for her from the beginning . Read the last page and find out if the mystery is solved.
A tribute to Taiwanesculture and the pineapple cakes .
The author shares that she grew up where pineapple cakes were a staple in her household. Read her author’s note and you’ll wish you could have grown up with them too. Telling when they ate them and that the story is based on Nantucket, a country in central Taiwan noted for tea, pineapples, natural vistas and Indigenous tribal villages. Read the rest to learn who else it’s dedicated to and why.
By Fran Lewis Just Reviews
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