A Garden for Lili
Written by Melissa Iwai
Illustrated by Melissa Iwai
Published by Norton Young Readers
Lili’s apartment building is having a block party! Lili heads down to the garden to get Nai Nai green onions for her fried rice recipe. There, she’s visited by all the grandmas in the building, who stop by to get ingredients for their block party dishes, bring scraps for Mr. Nibbles, the building’s composter, and show Lili the secrets to growing and maintaining a happy garden. When it’s time for the party, everyone brings a different delicious rice dish from around the world—Hashweh from Teta, Arroz Roja from Abuela, Carrot Risotto from Nonna, and more. After a busy morning in the garden, Lili’s extra proud of the strawberries she’s worked hard to grow!
A Garden for Lili is a cheerful, engaging, and informing celebration of urban gardening and the ways food connects our communities from award-winning picture book creator Melissa Iwai.
Primary ISBN: 9781324082187
Publication Date: May 2026
Available As: Hardcover, eBook
Picture Book , Age 04 or older
Community Represented: Chinese/Chinese American, Italian/Italian American, Jamaican/Jamaican American, Lebanese/Lebanese American, Mexican/Mexican American, Polish/Polish American
Themes: Cross-Group Friendship, Cultural Empowerment, Cultural Empowerment & Joy: Family, Cultural Empowerment & Joy: Food, Family Relationship: Grandparents, Family Relationship: Parents, Generation: 2nd, Multilingual: Arabic Featured Words, Multilingual: Italian Featured Words, Multilingual: Jamaican Patois Featured Words, Multilingual: Mandarin Featured Words, Multilingual: Polish Featured Words, Multilingual: Spanish Featured Words, Neighbors & Neighborhoods, Outdoor Exploration, Own Voices/Lived Experience, Religious Background: Muslim, Welcoming by Community
Setting: United States
Character's Place in the Immigration Journey: 2nd Generation
Book Creator(s) Connection to the Community Represented: Own Voices/Lived Experience
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