A delightful tale of a small community coming together to care for one another, celebrating diasporic AAPI food culture, found family, and upcycling!
Delivery girl Yuki loves helping out at her grandfather’s service station and dreams of owning a bicycle of her own! But Yuki’s grandpa has been trading goods to help out his local customers, and Yuki is concerned they won’t have enough money to buy a new bike. “On the island, everyone is ohana,” says Ojiichan. After assisting a neighbor who gets into a bit of trouble, Yuki discovers it feels good to be a part of a community that takes care of one another—and she even receives a special delivery of her own!
Inspired by the author’s Japanese-American grandfather who owned a service station on the Hawaiian island of Kaua’i, this cozy picture book honors local community and includes scrumptiously illustrated delicacies that make for a great seek-and-find element on re-reads, including: salty seaweed snacks, light and airy liliko’i pie, and fried malasadas. Great for curriculums on sustainability to demonstrate the value of taking something old and making it new again!