Winter Melon Story brings together themes of time, patience and the Asian gourd, winter melon. In this picture book, it illustrates an example of sharing of family history, stories, and culture with friends. As a child that grew up with few books that showed an accurate representation of my Asian or Chinese & Chinese American heritage, I wanted to create a picture book that would help address the lack of diversity children's literature where children share their culture with peers. While I was writing Winter Melon Story, I felt it especially important for Sammy to be able to have her friend Davey over, to share about her Poh Poh, the winter melon, and most importantly, enjoying the experience of cooking and eating a meal together.
Check out Winter Melon Story's recent Publisher Weekly's review:
"In a quiet story about patience, Sammy, a child with a chin-length bob and a gentle smile, visits her grandmother (“Poh Poh”) in Minnesota. It’s summer, and Sammy loves helping Poh Poh to garden and cook. When her friend Davey comes over to play, it’s an opportunity to learn about growing things... Lau’s spare illustrations render the characters simply and mark the passage of time with the visit of a small bird, two rabbits, and falling autumn leaves around the winter melon. A sweet multicultural story that suggests that the best things in life are worth a wait."
Make some winter melon soup with some friends or make it to share - Check out this older post for my recipe for winter melon soup or to see photos of winter melon that grew to more than 40+ pounds in my poh poh's garden, the true inspiration behind this book.