How we say I love you

Nicole Chen, 1980-

Book - 2022

"An Asian American girl shares how her family expresses their love for one another through actions rather than words"--

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jE/Chen
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Children's Room Show me where

jE/Chen
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Subjects
Genres
Picture books
Published
New York : Alfred A. Knopf 2022.
Language
English
Main Author
Nicole Chen, 1980- (author)
Other Authors
Lenny Wen (illustrator)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 24 x 27 cm
Audience
Ages 3-7.
Grades K-1.
ISBN
9780593428399
9780593428405
Contents unavailable.
Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 1--3--Hana's Asian American family shows its love for one another in actions instead of using a well-known three-word phrase. Hana feels her family's love every day in the delicious breakfast her mother makes to start the day off right; her grandfather walking her to school every day; her grandmother's delicious lunches; her father's encouraging words as she plays soccer and the way he reads to her at night. She shows them her love by trying her best in all things, pouring her grandfather's nightly tea, rubbing her grandmother's feet, and enjoying the sweetness of family time together. It's a love that Hana cannot wait to share with her unborn sibling to whom she whispers all the joys that await them. Chen's text has several Taiwanese and Mandarin Chinese words that work well in context. In addition, there is a helpful glossary at the book's end, though without a pronunciation guide. Using the style that has served her well in previous picture books, Wen's warm and cozy illustrations depict a multigenerational family that presents a vision of a happy home. The spreads are broken up with the effective use of occasional borders. Hana's classmates have various skin tones. VERDICT This is a successful story that shows not only the myriad ways families indicate love but also an extended family as well. A good general purchase.--Catherine Callegari

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

"My family loves me, and I love them. But we don't use words to say 'I love you.' " As a child narrates, readers see a smiling mother, father, grandmother, and grandfather bustle about a cheery, colorful home doing chores. The narrator explains how each family member expresses their love with actions: Mom "stirs her love into a pot of steaming xī fàn" (Mandarin Chinese and Taiwanese Hokkien words are sprinkled throughout and defined in a glossary), Ah Gong walks the child to school in the morning, Ah Ma packs a lunch of noodles, and Dad cheers and encourages from the sidelines of a soccer game. The child also shows love, saying, "I do my best at school so they can feel proud." Some readers may wonder: Is Chen implying that the family's reticence when it comes to verbally expressing their love is rooted in their being Chinese? Or is this a Chinese family that happens to be less verbally demonstrative? That's left up to readers to decide; regardless, it's abundantly clear from the detailed spreads and expressiveness of the characters that they are full of love for one another, with or without words. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A warm embrace of a book. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.