I was so happy to see this title, I'm Filipino and my young girls are half. It brought me joy and a lot of questions from my girls. Though my family has grown out of sending these boxes to the Philippines, it was nice teaching my girls about this tradition. They learned a lot of new words and got some ideas about how to re-purpose big boxes into play structures.

#BeasBalikbayanBoxofTreasures #NetGalley

This definitely tugs one’s heartstrings! The book is very sweet and authentic to the Asian (immigrant) sentiments and core values. The illustrations are beautiful and I love that the book used Filipino words and provided English translations. I’m definitely getting a copy once it is published!

I got an eARC from NetGalley. Many thanks to NetGalley, Christine Ishmael and Free Spirit Publishing.

I think this book is pretty amazing, not only to showcase different cultures but also to help maybe kids understand why some of their items may be given to other family members. I know it is pretty common in Latin cultures as well to send these big packages or even suitcases to family abroad that would be filled with hand me downs and old toys, and even though a child may no longer use those items - they may have some resistance in letting go of these things. I think this book can be a great way to help ease that transition for children in this areas. The book does a great job highlighting the benefits and the empathy it takes to share these items, while also not being overly blunt about it. The illustrations are vivid and eye capturing and can definitely hold a child's attention. Additionally, I do enjoy the questions and box instructions at the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC.

What a wonderfully relatable book! Items in the mail! Letters of love from family! The structure of the book takes the reader on the journey right along with the items in the box. Beautiful color schemes in the illustrations. Great story line. Addition of the Author's Note is a nice touch, as is the glossary and the ideas for the box. Creative and inspiring!

A vibrant, colorful tribute to Filipino culture and the love packed into every balikbayan box, this story brims with heart and heritage. The artwork sparkles with textures and detail, making each object feel like a piece of a bigger story.

Love how this story promotes creativity! I’m always looking for children’s books that have representation from different cultures, and this was a great one to add to that list.

What a charming and exquisitely illustrated book. I love the book's design and colors, which perfectly captures Bea's incredible imagination.

The significance of the Balikbayan box custom and all that it means to Filipino families are aptly conveyed in this book. The story's use of Tagalog words, along with a glossary and pronunciation guide at the conclusion, was fantastic.

Sharing is sweet

I love how Bea, a seven year old Filipina-American girl, fills up a box with goodies for her relatives in the Philippines. This book paints the family bond across continents and commonality of imagination amongst children.

The illustrations of Bea playing with boxes were vivid and exciting. The images captured throughout took you alongside Bea and her family shopping and gathering the supplies for their care package.

I think this book would pair well with individual or classroom lessons centered around having family that lives far away/in a different country and ways to keep connections active.

I received a copy of this book from Christine Alemshah and Teacher Created Materials | Free Spirit Publishing. I am voluntarily leaving a review. All opinions are my own.

This charming and endearing children’s story tells the tale of family across the world from each other sharing in simple joys and sending a care package filled with love! The illustrations are beautiful, colorful, and inspire imagination as any good children’s book should! The information, ideas, and facts shared at the end of the book pull the whole thing together in a short and sweet package for children to explore.

This book about a Filipina American has beautiful illustrations. I enjoy the story of the box and making this box for her relatives.

I unique story about a Filipino family with a tradition and the significance of said tradition. Our main character in the story is a little girl with an extremely vivid imagination. She imagine a spaceship and so many other way to play with one of the largest boxes ever! Illustrations in the book were so amazing and the highlight of this piece of tradition of culture was very well thought out. We also get the highlight of the journey of this package from both sides of the family.

A beautiful story about imagination. This book is very dreamy while being realistic. I appreciate the emphasis on Filipino culture.

Bea can turn a box into anything. A cave, a rocketship, and even a balikbayan! In this lovely story of Bea and her family we learn about the Filipino tradition of balibayan boxes. Bea and her family shop for gifts for their relatives in the Philipines and ship them in a large box. The box is full of not only goodies but love for their family so far away. This story is the perfect window for kids who have never hears about balikbayan boxes as well as a mirror for Filipino kids who maybe send their own boxes to their family. Complemented by beautiful art and incredible back matter, Bea's Balikbayan is a delight to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC.

It warms my heart that we're seeing more books with Filipino representation! As a Filipino American, this brought back memories of helping my mom pack Balikbayan boxes for all of my titos and titas living in the Philippines when I was younger. I loved the inclusion of Tagalog words throughout the story with a glossary and pronunciation guide at the end. This book perfectly captures the importance of this tradition and everything that it means to Filipino families.

I really liked this book and I learned a lot from reading it! This book is great for any kids out there, but it will be extra special and touching to kids that can identify with Bea, culturally. I loved to see how Bea allows her creativity to really shine when she's making the balikbayan box for her family, and I believe that that imagination will spread to young readers, and they will walk away from this book feeling inspired. Additionally, Bea's kindness is infectious, and I applaud the author for making such an awesome and effective main character. As for the illustrations, they were beautiful! The illustrator's use of space on the page and level of detail was very impressive, and really helped to bring this book to life. Bravo!

A wonderful, emotional and story about familial bonds by Christine Alemshah with beautiful, bright and emotive illustrations by Dream Chen. I really enjoyed this story and learning about the traditions and treasures of a Balikbayan Box! I really enjoyed how close the family is, even living in different continents and countries; and how much joy preparing and receiving a Balikbayan Box is. It was a delight to learn about this tradition!

I especially enjoyed the illustrations a lot. The book also features activity pages and a glossary.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Heartwarming and accurate depiction of what a balikbayan box is and what it means to Filipino families!

Bea has so many ideas for a cardboard box - a bear cave, a playhouse, or a rocket ship! But the most important thing it can be is a balikbayan box, filled to the brim with goodies for Bea's family in the Philippines. It takes a long time to get there, and when it finally does, Bea is so happy and excited for her cousin Mirabel to enjoy the toys, her Tito Rico to enjoy his tinned meats, her Tita Alma to enjoy the lotions, and the rest of her family to enjoy the other contents of the box. Once the box is empty, her cousins use it to play - what will they make of it?

I picked this up because I love seeing Filipino representation in books, and it definitely brought back some memories of filling balikbayan boxes with my parents when I was younger. It is really refreshing to also see a mixed family still partaking in cultural traditions. As a first generation American daughter of Filipino immigrants, it was really important for my parents to make sure they shared Filipino culture with me, and I love seeing that represented in this book where only one parent is Filipino.

I also really loved the inclusion of Tagalog words into the story with the glossary at the end because it felt more immersive that way, since it's normal to refer to uncles/aunts as Tito/Tita ___ instead of just their first names. Overall I think it's a great children's book that teaches about one of the most beloved Filipino traditions, and I loved the full circle journey of the balikbayan box from cousin to cousin as well.

Thank you to Teacher Created Materials | Free Spirit Publishing for this eARC via NetGalley.

Bea;s Balikbayan Box of Treasures greatly reflects this long-standing tradition of family members’ across oceans and divided by continents. The book is exceptionally warm. I would have wanted more emphasis on the connection between the two families but what was given was just right. The illustrations are also very beautiful done! A little side note though, I think the Philippine islands drawing was missing Palawan (huge island on the left, out-stretched). Might be a lowkey issue since there is some territorial dispute on-going there so I hope it would be included / edited in.

So cute and bright! The book follows a journey of a care package over seas while teaching us about what the care packages are, what goes in them and how long it takes. It's a cute way to teach families about other cultures!

Netgalley ARC - This is fantastic! The art style is engaging and fits well, I enjoyed the story and the emphasis on strategies like a countdown calendar and ways of playing that make waiting easier. The topic is special and well-presented for those who are unfamiliar and those who already make or know about balikbayan boxes. I appreciated the backmatter too. Recommend!