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“Roti has great significance in Indian life, history, politics, and culture. Though roti is made with flour, salt, oil, and water, it’s so much more than that… Roti is the memories of mothers and grandmothers passing their recipes across continents and over generations. It’s the farmers who grow and harvest the grains—and who lie awake at night, worried about their crops. It’s the parents who fret about their children going hungry. It’s the agriculturalists protesting unfair laws and those who march beside them in solidarity. Roti is also a way for immigrants to bring their cultures with them when they leave home. …This tender, lyrical picture book is a clever, poignant look at the myriad ways food nourishes us. A touching ode to a South Asian culinary staple.”

– Kirkus Reviews

Mama’s Roti

Written by Raakhee Mirchandani
Illustrated by Shreya Gupta
Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

A powerful story about the life-giving force of roti—a round Indian flatbread—and where it comes from, the people who grow it, and what it symbolizes within two families, inspired by the farmers’ protests in India.

A roti isn’t just a roti. It’s a day in the hot sun tending to the wheat fields. It’s little grains of truth about where we come from. It’s a snack in the car for the perfect road trip lunch. It’s hundreds of hands over thousands of years, kneading together our story.

Told through alternating perspectives of a family in America and a family in India, this powerful cross-continental, intergenerational story proves that something as small as a grain of wheat can create a powerful sense of community.

Primary ISBN: 9780316339469
Publication Date: October 2024
Available As: Hardcover
Picture Book, Age 04 or older

Community Represented:

Themes: , , , , , , ,

Setting: India, United States (New Jersey)

Character's Place in the Immigration Journey: Home Country, Immigrant,

Book Creator(s) Connection to the Community Represented: Own Voices/Lived Experience

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Engagement Materials:

Book Chat with the Illustrator: Shreya Gupta

Source: Hachette Book Group