The Most Beautiful Thing

Summary

Based on the author Kao Kalia Yang’s childhood. Yang, a Hmong refugee shows her family’s experience with lots of love not a lot of money. The story focuses on Kalia and her beloved grandmother, the book moves back and forth from the jungles of Laos to the family’s early years in the United States. Sharing the Kalia’s grandmother’s story along with their own.

When Kalia becomes tired of having to do without and decides she wants braces to improve her smile, her grandmother who has just one tooth in her mouth, helps her see that true beauty isn’t skin deep. And instead with family and those we love most.

This stunning intergenerational tale is brought to life by illustrations from Vietnamese illustrator Khoa Le

Review

This book is beautifully illustrated to show the close relationship between a grandmother and granddaughter. I especially love the portions of the book that show the grandmother’s youth. There is one particular illustration of her facing a tiger that is especially memorable.

I love the style of art it’s almost like a collage. The whole book deserves a 5/5 both for story and illustration.

Photo by Max van den Oetelaar on Unsplash