The Year of the Baby (An Anna Wang novel)
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1. In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Allow to proof, or set, until bubbly, about 10 minutes.
2. Put the flour, sugar, and baking powder into a bowl and mix. Add the salt and pour in the warm water-yeast mixture. Mix until the dough begins to form a ball. If it looks too dry, add more water, tablespoon by tablespoon, until it forms a ragged clump. Turn the dough out onto a floured countertop and knead by hand until the dough is smooth and shiny.
3. Place the dough in a well-oiled bowl and flip it to coat in oil. Cover with plastic wrap and store in a warm, draft-free place until the dough doubles in size, approximately 2 to 3 hours.
4. Cut 16 squares (approximately three inches each) of wax or parchment paper. Spray each square with cooking oil.
5. Punch the dough down, then divide in half. Roll each half into a log. Slice each log into 8 pieces. Roll a slice into a ball, then shape it into a thin, flat disk (like a pancake). Try to keep the center of the disk thicker than the edges.
6. Spoon a dollop of bean paste filling into the center of the disk. Pull the edges up around the filling and pinch together to form a bun. Place the bun on a square of parchment paper and cover with a towel. Continue this process with the rest of the dough until all of the buns are filled. Allow the buns to rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Working in batches, position filled buns (each still on its parchment square!) into a steamer, allowing room on all sides. (The cooked buns will be up to 50 percent larger.)
8. Steam the buns for 15 minutes, then remove the pan and basket from the heat. Let sit for 5 minutes before removing the lid. Remove the parchment paper from the bottom of the buns and serve immediately.
The Year of the Fortune Cookies
Follow Anna Wang to middle school in the third book in this series, The Year of the Fortune Cookies, coming in Spring 2014. Anna travels to China to help her teacher adopt a baby girl, but she worries: Will she really be able to contribute? And will she really be able to help the babies at the Lucky Family Orphanage? And how will it feel to be in a place where everyone is Chinese?
With the help of family, friends, and teachers, Anna begins to understand that the similarities between people are more important than the differences, and that people all over the world are connected.
Chapter One
Middle School
I make my way through the crowded cafeteria to an empty table near the back. There are a few familiar faces, but nobody I really know. I set my tray down, open my lunch bag, and take a bite of my raisin bagel. Last year at North Fairmount Elementary, I always ate lunch with Laura and Camille. After lunch, we went back to Ms. Sylvester’s room and she gave us jobs like sharpening pencils or washing the white board. Now Laura is at her new school eating with people I’ve never met, and Camille is slow to get through the lunch line.
“Hey, Anna, there you are.” Camille plops her tray down next to mine. “It takes forever to buy a carton of chocolate milk around here.” She pulls her headband down and back up again, then opens the carton and takes a sip. “Do you know which clubs you’re going to sign up for?”
I shake my head.
She takes the list out of her backpack. “My mom says I can’t join more than three at the very most.” Camille has circled the clubs she is interested in. “I can’t decide between knitting club, chess club, and C.A.T” She takes a bite of her macaroni and cheese. “What about you?”
The lunchroom is really hot and noisy. A boy is breaking his sandwich into bits and throwing them across the table. I can’t imagine staying in this school any longer than I have to. “I don’t think I’ll join anything for now. Anyway, if I do end up going to China, I’ll have to miss a couple of weeks of school.”
“You still haven’t heard?” Camille raises her eyebrows.
“Ms. Sylvester said they passed the interview. So now they just have to wait.”
Camille sighs. “I can’t believe it takes this long to adopt a baby.”
The bell rings and we head to class. The social studies teacher, Ms. Remick, has the schedule on the board. “We will have a shortened period this afternoon,” she explains. “To leave time for club shopping.”
Our new unit is called “Who Am I?” She asks us to reflect for a minute on what makes us who we are.
Allison raises her hand. “Our parents and grandparents.”
“I was born in China,” Camille says. “And that makes me who I am.”
I’m always surprised at the way Camille tells everyone she’s Chinese. I usually wait, hoping nobody will ask and wishing I could hide my Asian face.
Ms. Remick nods. “Who we are depends on many factors.” Ms. Remick continues her explanation. “One of the things that influences each of us is the community we live in. So our first unit will be an oral history project.”
Camille pokes me. “What’s that?” She always panics when she’s not completely sure what’s going on, and then she misses the rest of the explanation.
“We will interview people in our communities,” Ms. Remick says as she passes out a packet that describes our assignment. “We have to think about whose voices are important to hear and whose voices are often left out.” She tells the class to read the instructions and definitions carefully at home and start thinking about a person we might want to interview. The project is due at the end of the semester.
Everybody starts talking at once. Lucy wants to interview her grandpa, and Camille says she might pick Teacher Zhao, from Chinese school. I could interview Ray, the crossing guard, because he likes to talk and he tells good stories. But what does Ms. Remick mean when she says we should consider people whose voices are left out? Is she talking about people we don’t know that well? Or people we don’t know at all, like Kaylee’s birth mother? But it would be impossible to interview someone that you don’t know anything about and who you couldn’t find no matter how hard you searched.
It’s time to pack up and head over to the gym. “Hurry,” Camille says, pulling me toward the door.
About the Author
ANDREA CHENG writes picture books, and middle grade and young adult novels, and teaches ESL and children’s literature. She walks daily near her Ohio home.
www.andreacheng.com
About the Illustrator
ABIGAIL HALPIN is an illustrator and a graphic designer. Away from the drawing table, she knits, reads comic books, and plays the fiddle. She lives in New England.
www.theodesign.com