Now you know: What you eat by Valorie Fisher

The second book in the Now You Know series, written and illustrated in Fisher's trademark toy/photo style, is a fun, wandering journey through the origins of various foods.

Curious kids will delight in the carefully organized exploration. It begins with a picture index, listing all the foods explained in the book, and then a key to the organization. There are mathematical combinations that show which things come from something else (like milk and butter from a cow), plus and minus signs to indicate ingredients combined, and a picture key to check out more about different ingredients.

In the book itself, readers will learn what goes into an ice cream cone, the complexity of ingredients in a cookie, how maple syrup is made, and even simple items like an apple or popcorn have an interesting history to show. Kids are sure to recognize favorite foods like macaroni and cheese or chocolate as well as learning new facts about everyday items like eggs and honey.

The book ends with a picture showing a plate of five food groups and a reminder to make healthy food choices, a spread showing which vitamins and minerals are included in a variety of different foods, and two pages of a picture glossary defining terms such as bacteria, digest, and pollination.

I did find a few typos in the galley, but alerted the editor and assume these will be fixed in the final edition. A couple things seemed off to me, like the range of cheeses - there's plenty of goat and sheep cheese in the US, not just in Europe, but those are really minor quibbles. Fisher's illustrations are created with a vast array of tiny toys and she shows a nice diversity in the little dolls pictured. None of the items include meat, so caregivers can put off the discussion of where meat comes from for another time.

Verdict: A delightful and fascinating look at the origins of food for curious minds, from kids to grown-ups. This is a great pick for your classroom library or bookshelves at home and kids will love poring over its pages. It should spark many conversations about where food comes from - don't forget to let the kids try their own hand at cooking after reading it! Pair it with cookbooks on a display and it's sure to fly off the shelves. Recommended.

ISBN: 9781338215465; Published October 2019 by Scholastic; Galley provided by publisher; Purchased for the library