"Everybody Eats Lunch" by Cricket Azima with art by Titus V. Thomas (Glitterati, $16)

If your kids are like 90 percent of others, after a few weeks into the school year, they are probably tired of all the usual lunch foods. You can cheer them up in any number of languages, however, by getting them a copy of "Everybody Eats Lunch" by Cricket Azima.

Kids' cooking teacher Azima serves as an international tour guide to youngsters, ferrying them from country to country observing what their counterparts — vividly drawn by artist Titus V. Thomas — are enjoying for lunch.

After studying the global map that kicks things off, kids can take a gander at new friends such as Pedro describing his Mexican lunch of cactus salad, torta (stacked sandwiches), mango and caramel dessert sandwiches, Suki in Japan delighting in explaining her meal of onigiri rice balls, boiled pumpkin, marinated pickles and orange slices, or Jamaican Nelly singing the praises of his lunch that includes fried plantains, pastry-enclosed, curry-flavored beef patties, coconut chips and papaya.

Inside the book, which sports a cardboard handle reminiscent of a lunchbox, readers receive a greeting in the character's native language (additional countries featured are Brazil and South Africa). See how their pal dresses and learn what time they usually eat lunch; for instance, 2 p.m. is lunchtime in Jamaica and Mexico. The book features removable pieces — meaning, the publisher says, it shouldn't be used by kids under 3 — which are flashcards with drawings of the foods.

Highly appealing are the recipes (14 in all) featured beneath many of the cutouts. Some are extremely simple for kids to make on their own like the Mexican caramel sandwich — dulce de leche spread over graham crackers. Recipes that involve cooking should include supervision. What emerges, though, are fun meals for the whole family: tortas, which are stacked sandwiches of shredded chicken, refried pinto beans, vegetables, salsa and cheese; baked cinnamon-sugar rusks from South Africa; and the Japanese onigiri rice balls with a combination of rice, vinegar, cooked salmon or canned tuna wrapped in nori (seaweed sheets).

The book notes that it is designed for kids ages 3 to 8 and they'll certainly appreciate it; however, older kids would probably also enjoy the recipes, many of which are fairly advanced. And much older kids may become hooked, too. There are easy, tasty, healthy alternatives for when we, too, get bored with our mealtime routines, such as the pumpkin that only involves a bit of flavorful boiling in chicken stock, sugar and soy sauce. Other dishes are even more sophisticatedly enticing — I'm planning on serving South African pumpkin fritters at my autumn and winter holiday gatherings.

In fact, the book is so delightful that I'm already hoping for a series including "Everybody Eats Breakfast," "Everybody Eats Dinner" and "Everybody Eats Snacks."

TORTA

1 pound shredded cooked chicken (see Note)

1 (15-ounce) can refried pinto beans

1 cup iceberg or romaine lettuce, shredded

1/2 cup thinly sliced radishes

1/4 white onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cup salsa

1/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

4 bread rolls, halved

Yields 4 servings.

Divide and stack chicken, beans, lettuce, radishes, onion, salsa and cheese evenly among rolls and serve.

Note: To cook chicken — place chicken in pot of water or chicken stock and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, until chicken is cooked thoroughly, about 30 minutes. Per USDA, poultry should be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 165 F. Carefully drain, cool and shred chicken.

BOILED PUMPKIN

1/4 pound pumpkin (preferably kabocha, available at some supermarkets and Asian markets), peeled, seeded and cubed

1/4 cup chicken stock

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Yields 4 servings.

Combine pumpkin, chicken stock, sugar and soy sauce in frying pan over high heat and bring to boil.

Reduce heat. Simmer 15 minutes, or until liquid is almost evaporated and pumpkin is soft, stirring occasionally.

Lisa Messinger is a first-place winner in food writing from the Association of Food Journalists and the author of seven food books, including "Mrs. Cubbison's Best Stuffing Cookbook" and "The Sourdough Bread Bowl Cookbook." She also writes the Creators News Service "After Work Gourmet" column. To find out more about Lisa Messinger and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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