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Salma the Syrian Chef
At the Welcome Center in Vancouver, Salma and her mother adjust to their new life as they await the arrival of Salma’s father. Salma notices a persistent sadness in her mom, who used to laugh with her friends in the refugee camp. Attempts to elicit laughter from Mama with a funny drawing and a joke do not work, so Salma turns to Nancy, a helper at the Center, who suggests Salma draw a memory of a time when Mama was happy. With a handful of colorful Crayons, Salma sketches a scene: her family in their home in Damascus enjoying a meal of foul shami. That’s when it hits her. Surely the taste of Syrian food will cheer Mama up! With assistance from others, Salma prints out a recipe, shops for ingredients, and begins to cook. She runs into a few frustrating snags along the way, but with the generous help of her neighbors, the dish is a success—and Mama is delighted. Illustrations rich with cultural details and Syrian geometric design accompany this story of a creative and determined young immigrant and her supportive, diverse community. ©2021 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Illustrated by Anna Bron
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 4-8
Age Range:
PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7)
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Format:
Picture book
Subjects:
Community
Feelings/Emotions
Food and Cooking
Immigration and Immigrants
Mothers
Refugees
Syrians and Syrian Americans
Diversity subjects:
Arab
Asian
Middle East
Multicultural General
Muslim
Publisher:
Annick
Publish Year: 2020
Pages: 40
ISBN: 9781773213750
CCBC Location: Picture Book, Ramadan