Dim Sum for Everyone!

A simple narrative - "Ma-ma picks little dishes of sweet pork buns. / Ba-ba chooses little dishes of fried shrimp" - and bright, textured illustrations come together in Grace Lin's Dim Sum for Everyone, a picture-book celebration of the Chinese tradition of eating meals composed of many small dishes. Though the text is minimal, with one brief sentence per two-page spread, it manages to emphasize both the familial and communal nature of going out to eat Dim Sum, while also making it look fun.

Although I enjoyed this selection - chosen as the alternate sixth title for our June "culinary delights" theme, over in The Picture-Book Club to which I belong - I think I agree with some of my fellow reviewers in finding the text itself a little too show more minimal for my taste. On the other hand, I imagine that it will appeal to the very youngest readers, who will also appreciate the attention-grabbing illustrations. I liked Lin's use of color here, and the way her backgrounds, with their incorporation of little recurring motifs, all looked like fabric. I also appreciated the brief afterword explaining the history of Dim Sum, although I think it might also have been helpful to explain that "Jie-jie" and "Mei-mei" (used in the text) mean older and younger sister, respectively. show less

In my opinion this is a cute children's book that is effective in exposing children to Chinese culture. Though, I did have some issues with this book. I felt that it could have been more descriptive. This book lists different foods traditional to Dim Sum. I think this book could have been more effective if it had described the dishes in detail. This book was also lacking a clear plot. I feel it would have been more effective if it was told in a first person format of a child's experience at a Dim Sum restaurant, instead of a list who orders what. Although, despite these flaws I found the illustration to be colorful and exciting. These pictures provide as an informative way to show the different types of foods that can be ordered. I also show more appreciate the informative section at the end of the book that discusses the tradition of Dim Sum and how it came about in Chinese culture. With a story book lacking a definite plot, it is difficult to address a message of the story. However, I believe that a take away from this story is how Dim Sum is a Chinese tradition which brings friends and family together. show less

This short, simple picture book shows a family's trip to a dim sum restaurant, narrated by the youngest of three girls. She describes all the little dishes and who chooses what; "Everyone eats a little bit of everything. Now there are empty little dishes." A final page after the story explains the dim sum tradition. The red-patterned carpet and walls make up the background; the endpapers show the different dishes, labeled in English and transliterated Chinese (e.g. pork dumplings / siu my).

In my opinion, this was a good book. One reason I liked it is because it started simple and then became more informational. The first few pages had very large illustrations and only one simple sentence per page, such as “Dim Sum has many little dishes” and “Little dishes on carts and little dishes on tables.” The text was so simple it almost seemed poetic. The last two pages had very few illustrations but several paragraphs of information about Dim Sum. I also liked this book because of the illustrations. The characters were very large and bright when they were happy eating Dim Sum. The pages had a bright red background and the characters wore traditional, colorful clothing. The characters and details in the pictures were show more detailed, but not complex. It fit the text well, which also was not complex.
The purpose of this book was to teach children about a traditional Chinese dish, Dim Sum. On the last few pages, it provided information on where and how it started. It explained the importance of Dim Sum in Chinese culture. show less

Dimsum For Everyone is a book written about a young girls experience eating with her family at a Chinese restaurant. I loved that the book has kitchen tools and ingredients on every page. Before I read the book, I did a picture walk. I found that even if I was unaware of what dimsum is or had never been to a chinese restaurant, I would be able to recognize that they were at a restaurant. The text has repetition that allows the readers to make predictions of what would be the next line. Also, from reading this children's book, I learned about the Asian culture and cuisines. I was able to make a connection to the family in the book because they order numerous dishes that are shared between the family members. When my family goes out to show more eat at a restaurant we too order multiple dishes that are then shared between each other. I loved that I was able to relate the Chinese culture to my own culture and that this book introduced me to Chinese cuisines that I may not have known prior to reading. show less

This is a short easy read. It was a great introduction resource for my class to discuss food and tradition considering Thanksgiving is approaching. I loved how the story was easy to read but at the end elaborated on the tradition of dim sum restaurants.

Dim Sum for Everyone! is a cute story about a young Chinese girl and her family ordering dim sum at a restaurant. Every single member of the family orders something different. The message may not be clear here but a take away could be that everyone is different but can all get along and be together. The family is so happy eating their different little dishes together. They simply order or grab what they want without conforming to others. At the end of the book there is a page on Dim Sum history. This page explains that meeting to drink tea and have a small snack was an important part of their culture.