1 . My career as a chef started at the age of 25, but my ______ for cooking started at an early age, when I was about 5 years old — by watching my grandmother and my mom in the kitchen ______ daily meals for the family. I was also ______by going with my grandfather to markets to ______ the freshest ingredients. My grandfather taught me the art of picking and recognizing “the ______.”

From my youth, I have had this passion for food. Growing up in Morocco, I witnessed the most amazing hospitality and ______ through my grandparents. They opened their ______ to everybody, and fed and sheltered the poor, travelers, family and friends.

I remember as a young kid coming home from school to the ______ of fragrant (芳香的) fresh bread coming out of the oven. Those smells stimulated (刺激) my senses at a young age. The ______were fresh and seasonal — they were very simple dishes but delightfully ______.

Food is almost as ______ as it is necessary. Food makes people feel things. I really think that food tastes its best when there is a ______ behind it. It shapes cultures, religion, politics and health. Food brings people together, and goes straight to the ______.

In my kitchen, I try to duplicate (复制) smells and flavors that make me think about more than what I’m actually smelling or ______ — it makes me think of life, my family, and my history. I love to cook food that ______ people’s emotions and memories; my philosophy is to “keep food real and simple.”

3 .

Give me some Space by Philip Blunting Una dreams of a life in Space. Life on Earth is just so so-so. But how will she get there? And will she complete her mission to discover life in Space? On May 19th 2021, Give Me Some Space! was read to over 1.98 million children across Australia and New Zealand by NASA astronaut Shannon Walker – from the International Space Station (ISS)! Purchase This Book  Curiosity: The Story of a Mars Rover by: Markus Motum On August 6, 2012, the rover Curiosity touched down on the rocky surface of Mars — and now she’s ready to guide you through her journey firsthand. From idea to creation and beyond, this fact-filled, fashionable book introduces readers to Curiosity and her mission: to discover more about the red planet and search for evidence of life. How did Curiosity get her name? What tools does she use to carry out her tasks? Purchase This Book  Max Goes to Mars by Jeffrey Bennett Now fully updated with results from the Curiosity rover and much more, the new second edition of Max Goes to Mars picks up where Max Goes to the Moon left off, taking Max and his friends on the first human mission to Mars. There, you’ll learn how Max helps make one of the most important discoveries of all time. After returning home, Max and Tori reflect on the beauty and fragility of our own planet Earth. Purchase This Book  Ada Lace, Take Me to Your Leader by Emily Calandrelli with Tamson Weston Ada Lace likes nothing more than to play with mechanics like her robot, George. Her latest project is to fix up a ham radio, something that she could use to contact people on this planet…and beyond. During a sleepover, Ada’s best friend Nina hears something strange coming from the radio in the middle of the night. A distant voice says, “Release the swarm (蜂群)!” convincing Nina that aliens are about to invade the Earth. Purchase This Book

4 . The climate change in California has caused terrible damage to California’s marine ecosystems. Untold billions of sea stars, or starfish, from at least 20 species disappeared from the entire Pacific coast because of the marine heatwaves. In the absence of sunflower sea stars, a major predator for sea urchins (海胆), the urchin populations exploded. They laid waste to kelp forests (海草林) already weakened by high ocean temperatures.

However, Central California’s kelp ecosystems have done somewhat better than those in Northern California. A new study led by Joshua Smith, an ecologist at the University of California, examines the role sea otter (海獭) populations — a natural predator for urchins — play in preserving existing kelp forests in the Monterey Bay.

The research project spanned three years, during which intensive under-water surveys produced some very interesting data about sea otter behavior. Sea otters have very high metabolisms (新陈代谢) that keep them warm in icy waters and which also make them greedy consumers of shellfish, urchin, and fish — sea otters can eat 25 percent of their body weight in food in a day. At the observed sites, as the urchin population grew, the otter’s diet shifted to become more heavily dependent on urchins. In fact, the otters were eating three times as many urchins as they had been before 2014. As a result, they provided crucial protection from urchins to the kelp forests.

The fact that otters were able to contribute to the health of the surviving kelp forests by keeping urchin populations in check provides Smith with hope for the forests’ continued survival. “The important thing is that the urchins are ultimately reduced,” he says. “The sea otters have maintained patches of kelp forest that can then help refill the barren areas to enhance the recovery of forests.”

5 . Books are excellent gifts. Here are four of the year’s most talked-about titles.

Miro has temporarily abandoned literary fiction in favour of a new series of historical fantasy novels. Ordinary Monsters is about a group of children with magical gifts who come together and pool their powers to escape the bad shape-shifting man that’s going after them.

The soundtrack to The O. C., a drama series, and the strange beauty of Highway 401 were important factors in developing selfhood of Abdelmahmoud. This book describes his own experience of moving from Khartoum, Sudan, to Kingston, Canada, in the early 2000s at age 12.

Harry Potter has his magic stick. And Ning, the heroine of Lin’s first novel, has tea, which in her world carries magical properties. Lin has created a pleasing Young Adult fantasy rich in Chinese mythology (神话). In this book, Ning enters a competition to find the most gifted tea master, Shennong.

Unlike many other posthumous (死后出版的) works, you can count on Cohen’s to be worth your wait. Before his death, he said that the novel contained in the book, which was never published, was likely better than The Favourite Game, a novel he published during his lifetime. This book also includes a radio play script (剧本) and a handful of short stories.

7 . Hello everyone! Meet my new friend Marco.He says Ciao! This means hello in his language. Marco traveled with me this month. When he showed me his country on the map, I was attracted by its shape. It looks like a high-heeled boot(高跟靴) in the Mediterranean Sea that’s kicking a strange-shaped ball. Can you find the name of this ball on the world map?

Marco told me that he loves cars and that his country is well-known for super-fast cars like Ferrari,Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati. Isn’t it cool? The people also love soccer here.They call it “Calcio.” He told me that they have won four World Cups. The most recent win was in 2006! When he shared this with me, he was very excited and full of pride.

We visited the country’s capital and I was amazed to find that it was more than 2500 years old! We walked around and soon it was time for dinner. Marco told me that people there eat pasta (意大利面食) at least once a day. The different sauces and toppings(酱汁和佐料)mean they never get bored of it. Also, they love including seasonal vegetables in their dinners. I couldn’t wait to enjoy the pizza and pasta with different toppings and sauces. The cappuccino and focaccia bread also made me happy. It’s no wonder that the world has adopted (采用) so much of their food! The people in this country celebrate many holidays and enjoy eating big meals with their family. The festive atmosphere (节日氛围) makes everyone happy.

I was lucky to travel to this country in March and enjoy the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, or La fiera del Libro per Ragazzi. It is held for four days every year. We also visited the Colosseum, Panthon, and the Leaning Tower of Pisa, which was really wonderful!Before I said goodbye to Marco, I made a promise to visit again. Can you guess the name of this country?

8 . NEW NATURE WRITER OF THE YEAR 2022

Seeking talented new faces in the world of nature writing in 2022, we set you a challenge: to write about a special place where you feel close to nature. Your many entries traveled from urban park to moorland (荒原); mountain to lake; coast to garden. Reading them was a thrilling reminder of the power of nature to comfort and heal, but also to energize and excite. Choosing a winner was difficult. Thank you to our judges for their thoughtful consideration. One entry stood out as the winner. Scarlet Ribbons is published on our web page. We hope you enjoy it.

OUR JUDGING TEAM

Gillian Burke, biologist

“Achingly beautiful. This piece is near-perfect as far as I am concerned. It hit every mark, delivering all the elements set out in the brief and more. I could read it again and again and again…”

Nicola Chester, author

“I loved the ‘Hlansel’s bread crumbs of the Scarlet Pimpernel path’ that led you back to the past, to a Lost Eden. The line ‘the thaw (融雪) never came for our moorland household’ has such dramatic power.”

Cal Flyn, journalist and author

“What a striking piece of writing. This was lyrical, knowledgeable and showed deep connection to a place. It also came with an emotional hit that made me want to lie down.”

Joe Pontin, editor and chair of the judging panel

“Written with elegance and passion, Scarlet Ribbons transports you to the peaceful summer days of a young child exploring the countryside around the family farm in Yorkshire.”