No Kimchi for Me! by Aram Kim
Publisher: Holiday House
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 40
Age Range: 3-7
Grade Level: Preschool – 2
Synopsis
Yoomi hates stinky, spicy kimchi―the pickled cabbage condiment served at Korean meals. So her brothers call her a baby and refuse to play with her.
Yoomi is determined to eat kimchi. She tries to disguise it by eating it on a cookie, on pizza, and in ice cream. But that doesn’t work. Then Grandma shows Yoomi how to make kimchi pancakes. This story about family, food, and a six-year-old “coming of age” has universal themes, and at the same time celebrates Korean culture. A kimchi pancake recipe and other back matter are included.
Reflection
Thank you to Holiday House for sending me this book to review for Multicultural Children’s Book Day!
Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2017 (1/27/18) is in its 5th year and was founded by Valarie Budayr from Jump Into A Book and Mia Wenjen from PragmaticMom. Their mission is to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in home and school bookshelves while also working diligently to get more of these types of books into the hands of young readers, parents and educators.
Do your children have any food aversions? When both of my kids were babies they ate practically anything I made for them. Now as they’ve gotten older, they have become somewhat fussy about eating certain foods. My son tends to be particular picky about the texture and look of some meats. But aren’t we all a little picky sometimes? Besides, isn’t it normal for children to be fussy eaters anyway? It’s a way of exploring their environment and asserting their independence. Little Yoomi illustrates this point very well in the book No Kimchi for Me!
The kids and I really enjoyed this cute story! I especially liked the clever grandmother for finding a creative way to expand Yoomi’s culinary horizons by making a kimchi pancake. All it took was a little exploring in the kitchen. Is Yoomi cured of thinking kimchi is too stinky or spicy? Not by a long shot. But she is feeling braver about eating it and she’s proud of herself for having conquered something new and proving to her brothers she’s a big girl. A simple recipe for making kimchi pancakes is included in the back matter.
Pair this book with another one of our favorite Asian food-themed picture books Bee-Bim-Bop by Linda Sue Park for a fun story time session.
What is Kimchi?
Kimchi is a traditional korean dish made of fermented vegetables and seasonings. It’s considered to be one of the world’s healthiest foods. Kimchi is often eaten as a condiment or side dish and is also used as an ingredient in stew, soup and fried rice.
More Information About Multicultural Children’s Book Day
Current Sponsors: MCBD 2018 is honored to have some amazing Sponsors on board.
2018 MCBD Medallion Sponsors
HONORARY: Children’s Book Council, Junior Library Guild
PLATINUM: Scholastic Book Clubs
GOLD: Audrey Press, Candlewick Press, Loving Lion Books, Second Story Press, Star Bright Books, Worldwide Buddies
SILVER:Capstone Publishing, Author Charlotte Riggle, Child’s Play USA, KidLit TV, Pack-n-Go Girls, Plum Street Press
BRONZE: Barefoot Books, Carole P. Roman, Charlesbridge Publishing, Dr. Crystal Bowe, Gokul! World, Green Kids Club, Gwen Jackson, Jacqueline Woodson, Juan J. Guerra, Language Lizard, Lee & Low Books, RhymeTime Storybooks, Sanya Whittaker Gragg, TimTimTom Books, WaterBrook & Multnomah, Wisdom Tales Press
2018 Author Sponsors
Honorary Author Sponsors: Author/Illustrator Aram Kim and Author/Illustrator Juana Medina
Author Janet Balletta, Author Susan Bernardo, Author Carmen Bernier-Grand, Author Tasheba Berry-McLaren and Space2Launch, Bollywood Groove Books, Author Anne Broyles, Author Kathleen Burkinshaw, Author Eugenia Chu, Author Lesa Cline-Ransome, Author Medeia Cohan and Shade 7 Publishing, Desi Babies, Author Dani Dixon and Tumble Creek Press, Author Judy Dodge Cummings, Author D.G. Driver, Author Nicole Fenner and Sister Girl Publishing, Debbi Michiko Florence, Author Josh Funk, Author Maria Gianferrari, Author Daphnie Glenn, Globe Smart Kids, Author Kimberly Gordon Biddle, Author Quentin Holmes, Author Esther Iverem, Jennifer Joseph: Alphabet Oddities, Author Kizzie Jones, Author Faith L Justice , Author P.J. LaRue and MysticPrincesses.com, Author Karen Leggett Abouraya, Author Sylvia Liu, Author Sherri Maret, Author Melissa Martin Ph.D., Author Lesli Mitchell, Pinky Mukhi and We Are One, Author Miranda Paul, Author Carlotta Penn, Real Dads Read, Greg Ransom, Author Sandra L. Richards, RealMVPKids Author Andrea Scott, Alva Sachs and Three Wishes Publishing, Shelly Bean the Sports Queen, Author Sarah Stevenson, Author Gayle H. Swift Author Elsa Takaoka, Author Christine Taylor-Butler, Nicholette Thomas and MFL Publishing Author Andrea Y. Wang, Author Jane Whittingham Author Natasha Yim
We’d like to also give a shout-out to MCBD’s impressive CoHost Team who not only hosts the book review link-up on celebration day, but who also works tirelessly to spread the word of this event. View our CoHosts HERE.
TWITTER PARTY Sponsored by Scholastic Book Clubs: MCBD’s super-popular (and crazy-fun) annual Twitter Party will be held 1/27/18 at 9:00pm EST.
Join the conversation and win one of 12-5 book bundles and one Grand Prize Book Bundle (12 books) that will be given away at the party! http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/twitter-party-great-conversations-fun-prizes-chance-readyourworld-1-27-18/
Free Multicultural Books for Teachers: http://bit.ly/1kGZrta
Free Empathy Classroom Kit for Homeschoolers, Organizations, Librarians and Educators: http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/teacher-classroom-empathy-kit/
Hashtag: Don’t forget to connect with us on social media and be sure and look for/use our official hashtag #ReadYourWorld.
Love Aram’s art & her Cat on the Bus. Still haven’t read this one yet. Must request it now 🙂
Great! I hope you enjoy it!
Thank you for a wonderful review of Aram Kim’s book No Kimchi for Me. I’m so glad you enjoyed the book. I’m a huge fan of Aram’s work. Thank you for being with us today for MCBD.
Thanks again for having me – it’s my pleasure!
No Kimchi For Me looks like a wonderful book. Kimchi has a place in our home but we don’t all eat it! Thanks for this review.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
I remember the first time a student proudly offered me a bite of home-made kimchi, which I had never heard of before. Oh my….the tears! 😉 Food is such a great (and delicious!) way to explore, experience and celebrate other cultures.