Yoko & Friends (Yoko and Friends-school Days) - Hardcover

Wells, Rosemary

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786823453 ISBN 13: 9780786823451

Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children, 1998

Synopsis

When Yoko brings sushi to school for lunch, her classmates make fun of what she eats--until one of them tries it for himself

About this title

Review:

It is Yoko's first day at school, so of course her mother wants to send her off with healthy comfort food for lunch--a delectable package of homemade sushi. "Have a wonderful day at school, my Little Cherry Blossom," her mother says as Yoko climbs into the bus. And it would have been, had it not been for lunchtime. Timothy brings a peanut butter and honey sandwich. Tulip has Swiss cheese on rye. The Franks brothers have beans and franks. But when Yoko opens her cooler of rice rolls with "the crispiest cucumber, the pinkest shrimp, the greenest seaweed, and the tastiest tuna," one of the Franks brothers announces, "Ick. It's green. It's seaweed." Tulip and Fritz chime in, "Yuck-o-rama."

Rosemary Wells (Voyage to the Bunny Planet), with her expressive, bright-eyed, chubby-cheeked animal kingdom, has once again successfully tapped into the emotional world of children. The embarrassment of bringing an uncool lunch to school! What child hasn't wanted to hide under the cafeteria table when caught with a gooey enchilada or a slice of vegetarian lentil loaf? Fortunately, Yoko's teacher concocts a plan to stop the teasing. Parents who have more ambitious hopes for their children's lunches than Fritos, PB&Js, and Oreos will be relieved to discover that the happy ending does not include Yoko's giving up her comfort meal or, more importantly, her heritage. (Ages 4 and older) --Gail Hudson

From School Library Journal:

PreSchool-Grade 2-Yoko, a gray kitten, is crushed when her classmates (including Fritz, Tulip, and Hazel from previous titles by Wells) mock her favorite sushi lunch. Her plight, however, is noticed by her teacher. Under the guise of International Food Day, the resourceful Mrs. Jenkins encourages the insensitive students to bring in a dish from a foreign country and "Everyone must try a bite of everything." Yoko is further humiliated when her sushi remains untouched. However, Timothy's appetite leads him to the sushi cooler where he discovers crab cones. The next day, he and Yoko share dragon rolls and tomato sandwiches. A class song for every activity, the group dynamics, even the students' clothing and their sandwich fixings perfectly capture the grade school experience. The watercolor-and-ink illustrations vary from full page to postage stamp size and enhance the pacing of the brief text and the realistically contemporary dialogue. Every child's need for peer acceptance and dread of being "different" are addressed in an affirming and believable manner. The sushi endpapers and Yoko's beguiling smile on the title page introduce this newest heroine, and the eclectic but satisfying menu at the conclusion of the tale speaks volumes about open-mindedness. Just as Yoko's mother carefully crafted the delectable sushi, Wells, too, has tucked a real treasure in this tasty morsel of a tale.
Carol Ann Wilson, Westfield Memorial Library, NJ
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0786823453
• ISBN 13: 9780786823451
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32