The story is about Omu, who cooks a stew and shares it with her neighbors; they show their gratitude by bringing her food.

The book started as an assignment for a class of Mora's at the Rhode Island School of Design, where it was seen by an editor from Little, Brown.

The book, originally titled Omu's Stew, started as a student project for a class of Mora's at the Rhode Island School of Design: an assignment which required a character to have gained or lost something.

Mora chose a mixed media approach of cut paper, paint, and china markers for the book's illustrations.

[1][4] The use of collage gives, in the words of author Benjamin Anastas in The New York Times, "the book’s world a sense of depth and vibrancy.

[3][5][6] The use of mixed-medium collage was compared to the way stew is assembled and the book's themes of diversity and inclusion by Calling Caldecott 's Monique Harris.

[5][11] Omu's kindness being repaid by the neighbors helps to reinforce the book's theme of food as a means to sharing, diversity, and inclusion.