Now You Know What You Eat

Now You Know What You Eat. Valorie Fisher. 2019. [October 15] Scholastic. 40 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: How to read this book:
a + b = c  a combination of a and b equals c
a - b = a without b equals c
a } b a comes from or can be found in B.

Premise/plot: Now You Know What You Eat is a fascinating concept book for young readers. There are plenty of details packed into the illustrations. It does rely mainly on the illustrations and photographs. There is no central narrative text, just text boxes accompanying some of the illustrations. So the premise, what is it? On each page or two page spread, a food is highlighted. For example, vanilla ice cream cone, oatmeal raisin cookie, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, macaroni and cheese, pizza, vegetable soup, potato chip, etc. On the spread (or single page), illustrations/photographs reveal what is in that food and how it is made.

What ingredients make up an ice cream cone? What ingredients make up vanilla ice cream?

Some examples are more detailed than others. One of the more detailed pages is for oatmeal raisin cookies. Readers can learn where individual ingredients come from and then how to make those ingredients into a homemade cookie.

The page on peanut butter and jelly spends a good amount of time explaining the growing process of peanuts.

It has plenty of information including a nutrition guide, a page on vitamins and minerals, and a glossary of words to know.

My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. I love that it uses play food in the photographs. Not every illustration is a photograph, mind you. There isn't "play food" to represent a vanilla orchid, for example! But much of the finished food products are photographs of play food. Even the author (aka "book creator")  includes a photograph of a PLAY DOLL instead of her actual picture.

Kids are curious. And this book feeds on that natural curiosity. I found this one a very fun and satisfying read! It would have been GREAT fun if they'd included a spread on lunchables. (I understand why they wouldn't/couldn't. But still.) Also why was there no page on CHICKEN NUGGETS?!?! Fisher could have easily swapped out DILL PICKLES or VEGETABLE SOUP for a spread on chicken nuggets.


© 2019 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews