Lolo's Sari-sari Store

June 15, 2023
A Filipino child honors a beloved relative through acts of community service. The young narrator used to help Lolo (grandfather) run his sari-sari store in the Philippines during the summer. The child tells readers that sari-sari means a good variety, reflecting the shop's eye-popping inventory, from household products to freshly baked pan de sal. The endearing cartoons convey the joy of working in the shop as neighbors call out greetings of "Pabili po!" and "Tao po!" and Lolo fills each order with care. The child admires Lolo's ability to know what each customer requires even if they don't always say so--Manong Tonyom just needs a listening ear, for instance. Lolo is also a compassionate proprietor, giving free ice candy to a large family that can't afford to buy enough for everyone. The gently paced narrative then reveals that the child has moved to join Mama in the United States. Almeda's deft use of colors portrays the child in an empty blue house in contrast to the warm yellow and busy shelves of Lolo's store. After an exchange of kindness with a stranger at the grocery, the child is reminded of how Lolo made everyone who entered his store feel welcome and is inspired to reach out, helping other members of the community and making the new town feel more like a home. Readers will take to heart Lolo's lessons about the importance of kindness. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A gentle tale brimming with love and warmth. (Picture book. 5-8)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from August 1, 2023

Gr 1-4-From the opening page, in a first-person narration, a young girl tells of her recent dream of her favorite summers, spent with her grandfather, or lolo, in his sari-sari store in the Philippines. The shop, which has "a good variety" of things, opens early for the bread rush, hot pan de sal that everyone buys in multiples, and which quickly sells out. The child watches her lolo's ongoing kindnesses, from giving away sweets to children too poor to pay to listening to seafaring stories from an old sailor who just needs an audience. These joy-filled summers come to an end, though, and the girl and her mother are in the United States, where things feel different. First, the large grocery stores are cold and overwhelming. But an encounter with a kind woman over packaged pan de sal reminds her of Lolo, and the child finds a way to connect his habits with her new home. Her small acts of kindness soon bring her in touch with new neighbors and new friends, while the sky overhead reminds her of the sky back "home." Lee is fairly daring in thrusting readers back in time first; it's an awkward construct to consistently find the girl reflecting on how it was, back then, until the shift into the present provides balance. But the vibrant storytelling, beautifully portrayed by Almeda in scene after scene of textures and colors, compensates, and the story of homesickness brought to rights will resonate for many. VERDICT A lovely story fusing past and present, family lost and found, in memory and sensory experiences. An essential book for the shelves.-Kimberly Olson Fakih

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 9, 2023
Feelings of connection and service sustain a young narrator separated from their beloved Filipino grandfather in this bright tale focused on community-building. The unnamed narrator remembers how, in the Philippines, Lolo was more than a proprietor of a variety store. His work involved caring for friends and neighbors—through the items he sold, by offering “what people need the most... someone to listen,” and via generosity to children and adults alike. Looking up at the stars at day’s end, he’d ask his grandchild, “Aren’t we so lucky we have more than enough to share?” Now, having joined Mama in America, “it’s always cold, and the streets are mostly empty. I miss the familiar faces... I miss Lolo and his sari-sari store.” To find community in a new home, the child returns to the lessons Lolo offered. Almeda’s digital illustrations, bathed in golden light with dazzling contrasts, lend a warm feeling to Lee’s sensate descriptions in a book about what makes a heart “feel full.” Ages 4–8.