Phoebe-half Jamaican, half French-Canadian-hates her school nickname of "French Toast." So she is mortified when, out on a walk with her Jamaican grandmother, she hears a classmate shout it out at her. To make things worse, Nan-Ma, who is blind, wants an explanation of the name. How can Phoebe describe the color of her skin to someone who has never seen it? "Like tea, after you've added the milk," she says. And her father? "Like warm banana bread." And Nan-Ma herself? She is like maple syrup poured over...well... In French Toast, Kari-Lynn Winters uses descriptions of favorite foods from both of Phoebe's cultures to celebrate the varied skin tones of her family. Francois Thisdale's imaginative illustrations fill the landscape with whimsy and mouthwatering delight as Phoebe realizes her own resilience and takes ownership of her nickname proudly.

 

This book was recognised in the Blue Spruce Award category by the Ontario Library Association Forest of Reading Awards. It was recognised by the Shining Willow Award.

There are 32 pages in this book. This is a picture book. A picture book uses pictures and text to tell the story. The number of words varies from zero ('wordless') to around 1k over 32 pages. Picture books are typically aimed at young readers (age 3-6) but can also be aimed at older children (7+). This book was published 2016 by Pajama Press .

Christiane Duchesne hails from Montreal. She has written for television, film, and radio in addition to her work in children's publishing. Her works La Vraie histoire du chien de Clara Vic and Victor won the Governor General's Award for Children's Literature in 1990 and 1992, respectively. Francois Thisdale's work blends traditional drawing and painting with digital imagery. He is the illustrator of The Stamp Collector, which is on IBBY Honor List, and That Squeak, an honour book for the IBBY Canada Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Picture Book Award. Missing Nimama won the TD Canadian Children's Book Award. Francois lives in Montreal, Quebec. Kari-Lynn Winters is a picture book author, poet, and performer. She enjoys being in the classroom in any capacity, as a presenter, a teacher, or as a student. After finishing her doctoral program at UBC in literacy education, Kari-Lynn assumed her new job as Assistant Professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, where she teaches drama-in-education to and mentors teacher candidates.