tl;dr
A charming lead fights to save her family business in a tale about food, magic, and finding your own identity.

About
Mila feels out of place in Coral Beach, a small city where being Filipino makes her stand out. The only place where she can be herself is the Banana Leaf, her father's Filipino-Indian fusion food truck. Unfortunately, a new celebrity chef restaurant might put the truck out of business, especially after she discovers they've stolen her family recipes. But what can one person even do about it?

Thoughts
Growing up in the diaspora has some unique challenges, and I've read a lot of MG books lately that address this. This one in particular though really manages to hit it from multiple angles. It's difficult to try to shave off pieces of yourself to fit in, but it's also difficult when other people challenge your choices and make you feel "not enough." That being said, I think Mila's growth in learning to accept herself will resonate with any reader, and her own revelations really hit home. Ajay was also a great secondary character, with growing up and fitting in problems of his own, and their friendship over the course of the book was my favorite part. My second favorite part was, of course, all the descriptions of food. Filipino and Indian food are both excellent, and if there were a Banana Leaf food truck in my area, you can bet I'd be a regular customer. The ending is fun and hopeful, with all the loose ends tying up very neatly.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for the advance copy.