Box of Dreams

This is one big package of love and joy.

A mother and child connect with loved ones by post and shared memory in Kazmi's cheerfully told debut. When a child sporting a red dress wonders about the box Mama is packing, Mama says, "It's a balikbayan box. It means return to home, and it's how we share our blessings with our family. This box makes me feel closer to them." The items being packed prompt Mama to share stories of her childhood in the Philippines, picking mangos to eat as an after-school snack and splashing in the Pacific Ocean. Eager to share, the child adds their own items for cousins--plus a wish to visit family in the Philippines. Specific details (e.g., Mama's including a particular, hard-to-find toothpaste in the box) capture the care that goes into the final product, and Almeda's inventive digital images, which show Mama placed in moments of reminiscence while packing the box, add imaginative flair to this straightforward telling with a connective heart. An author's note concludes. Ages 4-8. (May)

Copyright 2024 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Gr 1-2--Near the Mayon volcano and warm tropical sea lives Lola (grandmother) in the Philippines. She is awaiting her balikbayan box, or return to home box, which contains items of love from her family. This beautiful picture book follows a young girl and her mother as they prepare the balikbayan box for her lola. With wonderful and descriptive scenes of growing up in the Philippines, the mother shares the importance of sending these boxes filled with food, toiletries, and special surprises. The little girl appreciates learning the history of sending these boxes, as well as her mother's life growing up. Readers share in the child's desire to add something to the box, as well as her imagined journey to her lola's home and country. The author's note shares additional history of balikbayan boxes and their place in the culture. VERDICT Told through vivid imagery and dialogue, this beautiful picture book amplifies an important cultural touchstone among families and their loved ones in the Philippines. Authentic and empathetic.--Tracey S. Hodges

Copyright 2024 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

"A mother and child connect with loved ones by post and shared memory in Kazmi's cheerfully told debut. Specific details (e.g., Mama's including a particular, hard-to-find toothpaste in the box) capture the care that goes into the final product, and Almeda's inventive digital images, which show Mama placed in moments of reminiscence while packing the box, add imaginative flair to this straightforward telling with a connective heart." — Publishers Weekly

"Almeda perfectly matches the cozy tone of Kazmi's evenly paced, tender tale with warm colors and expressive cartoons that fill each page. This is one big package of love and joy." — Kirkus Reviews

"This beautiful picture book follows a young girl and her mother as they prepare the balikbayan box for her lola...Told through vivid imagery and dialogue, this beautiful picture book amplifies an important cultural touchstone among families and their loved ones in the Philippines. Authentic and empathetic." — School Library Journal