A Caribbean celebration of family and food - with a spicy twist! There is not a better smell in the world than Ajee's Cook-up rice. The kitchen fills with the smell of coconut, garlic and spices. Faruq loves his grandmother Ajee, and he loves her cooking. In fact, Faruq would like to cook too - he wants to be a chef, but Ajee says he has to be a doctor like his father. But one day when Ajee is too ill to make the family feast, with the help of his neighbour Mrs Joseph, Faruq picks some hot wiri wiri chilli peppers and cooks up a banquet. Preparing food for his family fills Faruq's heart with love - and sets a different course for his future. This sumptuous story celebrates Caribbean culture and food through Sophia Payne's distinct voice that is reflective of her Indo-Guyanese heritage and is brought to life by Sandhya Prabhat's beautiful artwork. It also includes a recipe for Guyanese Lime cookies for you to try at home!
This colourful picture-book celebration of Guyanese cooking - including hot wiri wiri peppers - features a little boy desperate to learn to cook, and the joy of sharing food with family. -- Imogen Russell Williams - Guardian
As he watches his grandma prepare her traditional Guyanese cook-up rice with garlic, coconut, and wiri wiri peppers, Faruq dreams of being a chef. With vibrant and exciting illustrations and rich descriptive language, this picture book for younger children is bound to spark an interest in cooking and a love for family mealtimes. A lovely book to read and share. -- Tom Tolkien - School Reading List
This colourful picture-book celebration of Guyanese cooking - including hot wiriwiri peppers - features a little boy desperate to learn to cook, and the joy of sharing food with family. - The Guardian
A Caribbean celebration of family and food - with a spicy twist! There is not a better smell in the world than Ajee's Cook-up rice. The kitchen fills with the smell of coconut, garlic and spices. Preparing food for his family fills Faruq's heart with love - and sets a different course for his future. This sumptuous story celebrates Caribbean culture and food through Sophia Payne's distinct voice that is reflective of her Indo-Guyanese heritage and is brought to life by Sandhya Prabhat's beautiful artwork. It also includes a recipe for Guyanese Lime cookies for you to try at home! - Books for Topics
Author
About Sophia Payne
Sophia Payne discovered her passion for writing after a long-standing career in techinical support. She now writes picture books and steers clear of broken computers! Sophia was born and raised in the UK and is half Guyanese, half British. Her writing reflects her Indo-Caribbean heritage, and she lives by the mantra 'be curious, not judgemental.' Sandhya Prabhat is an independent illustrator and animator. She illustrates childrens' picture books and young adult books, animates for TV and movies, and creates stickers and other social media content for clients including Facebook, Microsoft, Google and Snapchat. Originally from Chennai, India, Sandyha now lives in California, USA.
The book’s bright colours and remarkably-detailed illustrations are immediately eye-catching and I find it hard to believe that young children (or adults!) will be other than enchanted as they follow Faruq’s culinary adventures and experiments in this delightful story, as they share in his joy in preparing a feast which is shared, enjoyed and marvelled at by everyone in his extended family. The fact that he and his family are Indo-Guyanese allows for an exploration of how different cultures have their own traditional recipes and how important it is that these should be retained and handed down from generation to generation.... Read Full Review
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