Chicago Public Library Best Picture Books of 2021 Parents Magazine October 2021 Book of the Month A sensitive story about food insecurity. Molly and her mom don't always have enough food, so one Saturday they visit their local food pantry. Molly's happy to get food to eat until she sees her classmate Caitlin, who's embarrassed to be at the food pantry. Can Molly help Caitlin realize that everyone needs help sometimes?

In this era of eroding commitment to government sponsored welfare programs, voluntarism and private charity have become the popular, optimistic solutions to poverty and hunger. The resurgence of charity has to be a good thing, doesn't it? No, says sociologist Janet Poppendieck, not when stopgap charitable efforts replace consistent public policy, and poverty continues to grow.In Sweet Charity?, Poppendieck travels the country to work in soup kitchens and "gleaning" centers, reporting from the frontlines of America's hunger relief programs to assess the effectiveness of these homegrown efforts. We hear from the "clients" who receive meals too small to feed their families; from the enthusiastic volunteers; and from the directors, who wonder if their "successful" programs are in some way perpetuating the problem they are struggling to solve. Hailed as the most significant book on hunger to appear in decades, Sweet Charity? shows how the drive to end poverty has taken a wrong turn with thousands of well-meaning volunteers on board.

Amara�s dad says they shouldn�t waste food. But why is this such a big problem? Follow their story and find out what happens to food waste, what can be composted, and how to reduce the amount of food we throw away.

Award-winning Lulu and the Hunger Monster is also available as a bilingual book in Spanish and English. When Lulu's mother's van breaks down, money for food becomes tight and the Hunger Monster comes into their lives. Only visible to Lulu, Hunger Monster is a troublemaker who makes it hard for her to concentrate in school. How will Lulu help her mom and defeat the Monster when Lulu has promised never to speak the monster's name to anyone? This realistic and hopeful book in Spanish and English builds awareness of the issue of childhood hunger, increases empathy for people who are food insecure, and demonstrates how anyone can help end hunger. Lulu and the Hunger Monster /Lulú y el Monstruo del Hambre empowers children to destigmatize the issue of hunger before the feeling turns into shame. The author combines years of experience fighting hunger as a food bank CEO with an MFA in writing for young children to craft an honest story of how poverty and food insecurity can affect adults and their children. Lulu's story addresses the effects of hunger on learning and can be used in group settings to address social justice issues in an accessible and encouraging way. Food Justice Books for Kids series This series takes complex food justice issues—food insecurity, how food is marketed and sold, and food systems—and makes them kid-friendly and fun to read. In three separate but connected stories, Lulu, Jesse, and Frankie confront the Hunger Monster, Snack Food Genie, and Food Phantom. As they do, readers follow along and learn more about how each of us can take small steps toward greater food justice for everyone. A section at the back of each book offers children ways to further explore the story and make a difference in their own communities.

CLICK HERE to download two recipes & the section on growing your own pantry garden from Urban Pantry * Timely recession-proof tips for getting the most out of your pantry and produce * Great gift for home cooks, gardeners, and canners * Focuses on small-batch preserving for home owners and apartment dwellers Urban Pantry is a smart, concise guide to creating a full and delicious larder in your own home. It covers kitchen essentials, like what basics to keep on hand for quick, tasty meals without a trip to the store, and features recipes that adapt old-fashioned pantry cooking for a modern audience. Avid chef and gardener Amy Pennington demystifies canning and pickling for the urban kitchen and provides tips for growing a practical food garden in even the smallest of spaces. Her more than sixty creative recipes blend both gourmet and classic flavors while keeping economy in mind, and include: Whole Grain Bread Indian-Pickled Carrots Herbal Minestrone Apricot Chickpea Salad White Bean &Lemon Salad /br Over Easy with Tomato & Chocolate-Buttermilk Cake Toasted Almond Crackers Potato Gratin with Cashew Cream Walnut & Chicken Fig & Batidos Milk-Braised Pork Shoulder with Sage Rhubarb Jam Boozy Blood Orange Marmalade Urban Pantry holds sustainability at its center: Take advantage of local ingredients, eliminate wasteful kitchen practices, and make the most out of the food you buy or grow. Also available, check out Amy's e-Shorts of her use of in-season vegetables, month-by-month!

"Well preserved, prettily pickled, candied, brandied, potted, bottled, sun-dried, and otherwise put-by elegant edibles"--Cover subtitle. 250 recipes. Includes glossary and mail-order sources.