Named 2021 Superpower Book for Identity and Culture by Every Child a Reader

Let's Eat Snails takes young readers on an ethnic culinary adventure. In a Sicilian-American household, cooked snails are the ultimate treat, as one young visitor comes to delight in understanding. This captivating story serves up a lesson in the value of being open-minded and not being afraid of what you don't know.

Let’s Eat Snails celebrates Italian-American culture through a story that introduces kids to its familial and culinary traditions. When Margie visits the Barcellona family home, she isn’t ready for what the Sicilian family is bringing to the table: snails! Margie embarks on a culinary adventure in harvesting, purifying, and cooking snails to find that they are, in fact, delizioso! Savor this heartwarming tale from author Barbara Barcellona-Smith’s childhood, delightfully illustrated by the prolific Karen Lewis. Let’s Eat Snails recognizes our differences and shows that what sets us apart also brings us together.

This charming book captures the Italian traditions that make its culture so special. Eating snails may seem icky to the uninitiated, but this book makes it sound exciting and adventurous! It also gently shows how we can learn from one another with the sharing of food and our family values.

—James Doti, president emeritus of Chapman University, author of the award-winning I Love You This Much, Nonna and A Christmas Adventure in Little Italy

Let’s Eat Snails! is a wonderful introduction not only to Italian cuisine, but to Italian culture—my culture. A must-read for those interested in expanding their understanding of different cultures, traditions, family, and food.

—Dan Yaccarino, author/illustrator of All the Way to America: The Story of a Big Italian Family and a Little Shovel and I Am a Story

This book took me right back to my Italian-American childhood kitchen, where there was always something cooking that smelled delicious, especially at my grandparents' house. Will be a great classroom tool as there is so much to learn about Italian-American traditions including through the preparations made for eating snails.

—Diana Pishner Walker, author of the Hopping to America series, Spaghetti and Meatballs: Growing up Italian, and The Christmas Feast: A Fishy Tale

Let’s Eat Snails! is a delightful read that bridges cultures. It’s infused with interesting ingredients—a loving family, friendship, and great food—all of which offer a peek at Italian-American life.

—Reem Faruqi,, author of Lailah’s Lunchbox: A Ramadan Story

Let’s Eat Snails! takes us on a culinary journey into the ancestral history of Italian food—and, specifically, to a dish that still rules in many Italian kitchens and gourmet restaurants. This wonderful little book should find a special place in children’s literature that celebrates cultural traditions in all their diversity.

—Edvige Giunta, co-editor of The Milk of Almonds: Italian-American Women Writers on Food and Culture

Bravissima! A terrific introduction to eating an unusual Italian dish.

—Faith Willinger, born-again Italian, author of Adventures of an Italian Food Lover and Red, White, and Greens

What a lovely tale, marvelously illustrated, full of family, love, tradition, and savory snails! I cannot recommend it highly enough.

—Junot Diaz, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Islandborn, This Is How You Lose Her, and other books

About the Author/Editor

BARBARA BARCELLONA SMITH grew up on the central coast of California with her Italian father, Giuseppe Barcellona, and Puerto Rican/ Cuban/Lebanese mother, Emily. It was nothing to come home from school to find dead doves, rabbits, or whatever her hunter-dad shot that day. Barbara’s ethnic household was quite unique providing her with a lifetime supply of strange, entertaining, and valuable stories she has written and is excited to share with young readers today. In addition to writing, Barbara worked as a radio promotions director, an award-winning television commercial production coordinator, and a corporate marketer. She has a degree in journalism/public relations from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She was an English as a Second Language educator and currently lives in Enterprise, Alabama.