Still There Was Bread

Gentle narration and painterly illustrations illuminate the making of a “kneaded and needed” dietary staple across generations in this homey picture book. Grandmother Nana, visiting the child narrator, is going to “show me, her Little Pickle, how to bake our special family bread.” Once the pair starts working in the kitchen, unadorned text juxtaposes each contemporary step with one from a previous generation. As the duo gather store-bought ingredients and preheat the electric oven, Nana explains how “her nana had to collect eggs from the chicken coop” and fuel the wood-burning stove. The chiaroscuro of Soman’s pen-and-ink and watercolor images contrasts evenly lit situations with theatrically lit, darker-toned flashbacks, communicating how, as Detlefsen writes, amid hardships (the Great Depression, Covid lockdowns), “still there was bread.” Protagonists are portrayed with pale skin, while background characters appear with various skin tones. An author’s note and recipe conclude. Ages 4–8. (Oct.)