Lamingtons and dumplings by Pho Yann. Illus. by Annelies Billeter

Connor an Australian boy who lives in the Alice Springs and Jianyu who lives in Beijing are pen pals who live in different parts of the world. The book shows how they learn about each other through the incredible world of technology, social media and the internet.
Lamingtons and Dumplings is a great description for this book as the boys learn about each other’s lives through the food they eat and the activities they do. The books perfectly contrast the difference between the boys’ lives through showing similarities.
Both boys get up and have breakfast, although they eat different foods, they both go to school, have lunch and do afternoon activities. The illustrations certainly help to show the differences in the boys lives.
This story allows children to see that while there are so many differences there are similarities that link us all. However, I found it to be too simplistic and at times it fails to show the true experience of a child living so far out of town on a farm.
I found this book to be a frustrating read as it was very short sentences that didn’t flow. The information is very basic, the characters are much older than the audience who would be reading this and I feel that this would have an impact on its popularity. I would recommend having this in the library but not as a class text or read aloud, rather as one to show children for comparison if they show an interest.
Themes: Friendship, city vs country life, Comparing experiences.
Mhairi Alcorn