Linda Sue Park, illustrated by Ho Baek Lee,
Bee-Bim Bop!
Clarion, 2006.

Ages 4-7

This jolly picture book of endearing verses, by award winning author Linda Sue Park, is dedicated to "everyone who loves Korean food", and it turns cooking traditional Korean 'bee-bim bop' into an amusing dinner-time adventure for a very young girl.

Daughter must first help mama shop for the right ingredients, then stick around to watch the chopping, frying, and mixing, all along letting her mother know how hungry she is and how it's so very hard to wait. Not overburdened with details, the text lists the ingredients and the steps to make  bee-bim bop. The girl's excitement accurately conveys the delight of young children "helping" in the kitchen.

When dinner is served the family gathers to mix and eat their rice, meat and vegetables, and the little one's tummy can finally rejoice.

Subtle details of family life add to the overall feeling of warmth that the book conveys, and Lee's illustrations of the busy little girl prancing around the kitchen and of the family gathered to enjoy the meal get that family-meal pleasure just right! A treat for little tummies, eyes and ears.

It belongs on the shelf right next to another one of Park's picture books: Yum! Yuck! A Foldout Book of People Sounds (Charlesbridge Publishing, 2005).

Aline Pereira
June 2006