Pockets of Love

Reviewed by Paige Pagan

Review Source: Teaching for Change
Book Author: Yamile Saied Méndez

Star and Sebi pair up with their father to make empanadas for mami on her birthday, just as their grandmother used to do every year before she passed away. Fortunately, grandma Monona left a recipe, but unfortunately, it doesn’t disclose what her secret ingredient was. Still, the children get to work and eventually learn that the love packed into these yummy pockets was grandma Monona’s secret ingredient all along.

We recommend this book with a caveat — the family’s culture is never mentioned in text, making an unnecessary generalization about Latin American countries and Hispanic culture. The clear takeaway of this narrative is that every country has its own “pocket of love” to appreciate, from dumplings, wontons, alcapurrias, and empanadas to tamales, turnovers, piononos, and more, so divulging the family’s culture would have brought a uniqueness to a dish that’s made in different variations across Latinx backgrounds. It can be inferred that the family’s country of origin is Argentina from the author’s own recipe included in the backmatter, but blanket sentiments in the book such as “The one [market] downtown where Monona always found fruits and ingredients from back home, where Mami and Papi were born,” (11) already laid the foundation for more specificity that fell short.

Paige Pagan is a Social Justice Books program specialist at Teaching for Change.

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Find more recommended books on this topic on our Grief and Latinx booklists.

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Pockets of Love by Yamile Saied Méndez
Published by HarperCollins on September 3, 2024
Genres: Grief, Latinx
Pages: 40
Reading Level: Early Childhood, Grade K, Grades 1-2
ISBN: 9780063234970
Review Source: Teaching for Change

Publisher's Synopsis: Sweet or savory. Fried or baked. Little pockets filled with love and a taste from home. Grandma Monona always made the best empanadas for Mami's birthday. But this year Monona is in heaven and Mami is sad. Her birthday won't be the same without Monona.

Star and Sebi know they need a special birthday surprise to cheer up Mami. Maybe they can make Mami Monona's empanadas themselves! But will they be able to capture the same magic as Monona's empanadas if they don't know her secret ingredient?