Review: Lessons in Fusion
Lessons in Fusion by Primrose Madayag Knazan Yellow Dog (imprint of Great Plains Publishing) Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Heidi Rabinowitz Buy at Bookshop.org Canadian teen food blogger Sarah (pronounced SAH-rah, the Hebrew way) becomes a contestant on the TV show Cyber Chef, where she is strongly encouraged to explore the cuisine of her mother's Filipinx culture despite having been raised mostly in the Jewish traditions of her father's side. While she likes the opportunity to learn more about her heritage, she also feels somewhat unseen by the show's producers. She achieves true fusion when she finally embraces both her cultures, as a person and in her cooking. The story takes place during the COVID-19 pandemic, and leans into the quarantine scenario by depicting a cooking show that is filmed in the homes of the contestants and judges. As a reviewer, this is the first YA novel I've seen to use the pandemic as a setting, and I'm pleased that this worldwide