Dim Sum Palace is a cute story about a child dreaming about going to the Dim Sum Palace. Like most young children she imagines a palace rather than a restaurant. The colorful pictures add much to the story. ( )

There are strong echoes of Maurice Sendak's In The Night Kitchen in this tale about Liddy, who goes to sleep eager for tomorrow's trip to the Dim Sum Palace, and dreams of visiting a real palace and being made into a dumpling and served to the Empress. But Liddy avoids being eaten and joins the Empress' feast as a guest. When she wakes the next day, she finds that the real Dim Sum Palace isn't a palace at all, but the family meal is still even more delicious than in her dreams. The endpapers (graphite on paper) are tantalizing illustrations of dim sum: steamed pork bao, congee, radish cake, vegetarian dumpling.

A book to drool over.

See also: In the Night Kitchen; Dim Sum, Here We Come ( )

Over the years, I've received a number of books through Tundra Books (Penguin Random House). One fact has been true, they will be beautiful, high quality, books. Dim Sum Palace by X. Fang is no exception. Young Liddy heads to bed with visions of her first visit to Dim Sum Palace. Dreams and reality become mixed in Liddy's mind and what follows is delightful. Will there be a Princess at the palace? Will there be delicious food? Join Liddy on her fantastic journey. Fang plays with scale in her attractive illustrations which blend well with the text. Overall, a great option for a multi-cultural classroom activity or a home library. Thanks to #ReadTundra and #LibraryThing for this review copy. ( )

I received a free advanced copy of this book from the LibraryThing Early Reviewers giveaway in exchange for an honest review. Liddy is excited to go to dim sum with her parents...and when she falls asleep, she is transported to the Dim Sum Palace. But oh no! Liddy falls into a bowl of dumpling filling and is made into a dumpling herself. Comparisons will inevitably be made to Maurice Sendak's In the Night Kitchen, but Dim Sum Palace stands on its own with assured artwork that ably conveys Libby's dumpling dreamscape. The simple story line is a fine match for the illustrations and a good example of fantasy for young children. It is hard to believe that this is X. Fang's debut picture book, and this reviewer hopes that we will see more from her in the future. Sure to delight both dim sum veterans and those new to this delicious tradition. ( )

A really fun picture book (with Sendak vibes) about a girl named Liddy who is so excited about a family trip to the Dim Sum Palace that she can't sleep! So when a tempting smell wafts into her bedroom, she has no choice but to folllow it...to a real palace, where the royal chefs are busy making dim sum! The story is heartwarming, surreal, a bit dark, and playful. And the illustrations using colored pencil, characol, and collage are quite wonderful. This has all the makings of a future picture book classic ( )