Day’s Lee tells stories to teach her nieces and nephews about family history. The Montreal author drew on her memories of working in her parents’ restaurant for The Fragrant Garden (Napoleon Publishing).

On Sunday evenings, nine-year-old Jade works at her family’s restaurant. Yearning to perform more exciting tasks, she asks her father to teach her how to work the cash register. He refuses, believing her to be too young to handle such a great responsibility. One evening a small fire breaks out in the kitchen. Jade is there with the cooks, and she extinguishes the flaming wok with an pot lid. When her father learns of her quick thinking and responsible effort, he rewards her with ice cream and a promise to let her learn how to operate the cash register.

Lee’s feel-good story conveys the positive and encourage message that children, no matter how young, are capable of significant feats. The varied forms (spot art, landscape, vertical, and horizontal) of Josée Bellemare’s artwork lend the book visual appeal. mRb