THE WHOLE WORLD INSIDE NAN'S SOUP

A grandmother dishes up a potful of surprising ingredients and traces the origin of a family recipe.

When a child asks Nanni what is inside the big pot on the stove, Nanni’s unexpected response—“Seeds”—inspires a deep dive into the lengthy process through which plant-based food is cultivated and distributed to modern consumers. As Nanni describes the vital roles of gardeners, soil and rain, natural light, and bees, the child envisions wondrous scenes with touches of magic, like an anthropomorphized theatrical cast of sun, moon, and stars, or a world that includes fantastical creatures living alongside humans. The colorful spreads are jam-packed with details, including Nanni’s rustic kitchen, harvesting in the fields, and a cityscape bustling with traffic. The idea that all of these elements are found in the pot may pose a challenge for mature readers to explain to their youngsters the figurative speech and abstract thinking underlying the narrative. Likewise, the romanticized portrayal of farm workers feels ironic given the evidently industrialized food system transporting vegetables via “delivery trucks, boats, and trains.” Such inconsistencies aside, this story celebrates cooking with love, the essential ingredient binding the generations of this family through a single special recipe, while drawing attention to the abundant—all too often invisible—labor in food production. Nanni and her grandchild are of Chinese descent.

Philosophically rendered; requires guided reading, patience, and imaginative rumination on the true meaning of farm to table.