Grandpa Cacao: A Tale of Chocolate, from Farm to Family

“Chocolate is my most favorite thing ever,” the narrator of Zunon’s family story declares. On her birthday, she and her father make a chocolate cake. As they prepare the ingredients, the father remembers his childhood on his father’s cacao farm on the Ivory Coast: “ ‘The air, the rain, and the soil must be just right for growing cacao.’ Daddy holds a sieve over the mixing bowl, and I pour in the flour.” As a young man, he helped to bag the cacao beans for buyers and liked to taste the cacao fruit pulp. Harvest scenes feature screen-printed white figures over painted backgrounds, while contemporary scenes integrate collage accents. A surprise visit brings the story full circle as Zunon conveys how scents and shared recipes can connect the past to the present. Back matter includes a cake recipe and information about how chocolate is made. Ages 3–6. [em](May) [/em]