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Book Cover for: Tomatoes for Neela, Padma Lakshmi

Tomatoes for Neela

Padma Lakshmi

The New York Times Best Seller
2021 The New York Times Best Seller
Padma Lakshmi, bestselling author and host of Bravo's Top Chef and Hulu's Taste the Nation, and Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal team up in this celebration of food and family.

"Some of my fondest memories from childhood are of cooking with the women in my family. It is the foundation for all I have spent my life working on." -Padma Lakshmi

Neela loves cooking with her amma and writing down the recipes in her notebook. It makes her feel closer to her paati who lives far away in India. On Saturdays, Neela and Amma go to the green market and today they are buying tomatoes to make Paati's famous sauce. But first, Neela needs to learn about all the different kinds of tomatoes they can pick from. And as Neela and Amma cook together, they find a way for Paati to share in both the love and the flavors of the day.

Bestselling author and host of Bravo's Top Chef and Hulu's Taste the Nation Padma Lakshmi takes young readers on an intergenerational journey full of delicious flavors and fun food facts that celebrates a family's treasured recipes. And Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal brings this circle of women to life with vivid detail and warmth. Tomatoes for Neela lovingly affirms how we can connect to other cultures, as well as to our own, through food.

Book Details

  • Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
  • Publish Date: Aug 31st, 2021
  • Pages: 40
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 12.00in - 9.60in - 0.60in - 1.20lb
  • EAN: 9780593202708
  • Recommended age: 03-07
  • Categories: • Cooking & Food• Family - General (see also headings under Social Themes)• Travel

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About the Author

Padma Lakshmi is the creator and host of Hulu's Taste the Nation and host and executive producer of the Emmy-winning Bravo series Top Chef. She is the bestselling author of two cookbooks, the Encyclopedia of Spices and Herbs, as
well as her memoir Love, Loss, and What We Ate. Lakshmi is also cofounder of the Endometriosis Foundation of America, an artist ambassador for the ACLU, and a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations. She lives in New York City with her daughter. Her favorite kind of tomato is a San Marzano.

Juana Martinez-Neal is the winner of the Pura Belpré Illustrator Award for La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Middleton Elya and the Caldecott Honor Award for Alma and How She Got Her Name, which she also wrote. Originally from Lima, Peru, she lives with her husband and three children in Arizona where she cooks with lots of Roma tomatoes.

More books by Padma Lakshmi

Book Cover for: The Best American Food and Travel Writing 2024, Padma Lakshmi
Book Cover for: The Encyclopedia of Spices and Herbs: An Essential Guide to the Flavors of the World, Padma Lakshmi
Book Cover for: Padma's All American: Tales, Travels, and Recipes from Taste the Nation and Beyond: A Cookbook, Padma Lakshmi
Book Cover for: Love, Loss, and What We Ate: A Memoir, Padma Lakshmi
Book Cover for: The Best American Travel Writing 2021, Padma Lakshmi
Book Cover for: Tangy Tart Hot and Sweet: A World of Recipes for Every Day, Padma Lakshmi

Praise for this book


"The sweet, lushly illustrated tale succeeds in showing the importance of food as connection within one Indian American family." -Publishers Weekly

"Martinez-Neal's warmly textured, beautifully detailed illustrations are the perfect celebration of intergenerational love." -Kirkus Reviews

"Exquisite illustrations by Caldecott Honor Book author-illustrator Martinez-Neal make this title one that belongs front and center on shelves everywhere." --Booklist

"The intergenerational warmth and pleasure in cooking together are palpable. Part informational, part family story, this attractive book will speak to young kitchen helpers and those with loved ones in far-off places." -School Library Journal