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Celebrate the power of food to create delicious, lasting memories with this poetic and playful exploration of the joy of waiting for, and finally sharing, fried plantains.
Mama steers the cart toward the produce section of the grocery store and picks up a bunch of green plantains. Thus begins a week of anxious anticipation as a young girl waits for mustard yellows to seep onto the unripe green peels. By Thursday, black marks begin to splotch and streak across the plantains. And finally, on Sunday, the frying pan sizzles and hisses, as Mama serves up the warm, sugary slices the young girl has waited for so long.
Much like there is sweet treasure hidden beneath the skin of a plantain, this beautifully written and evocative story reaches far beyond the act of preparing a favorite food. Ripening Time celebrates the way food and family entwine to connect us across generations—and serves as a touching reminder that some of the sweetest rewards in life are worth the wait.
Patrice Gopo is the child of Jamaican immigrants and was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. She is an award-winning essayist and author whose work ponders how places shape the people we become. From a young age, Patrice desired to visit Jamaica and other meaningful places she had only traced on a globe. She lives with her family in North Carolina—another place she considers home. Patrice’s first picture book, All the Places We Call Home, published with WorthyKids in 2022.
Carlos Vélez Aguilera is a professional illustrator and graduate of the National School of Plastic Arts at the National University Autonomous of Mexico. He has illustrated for books, magazines, and animation projects, including his own authored book, Salón Destino. He works in pencil and ink to create sketches and character studies, then colors his work digitally.
