Where Thuong Keeps Love

July 15, 2021
A young Vietnamese girl discovers the varied ways in which her friends and family express their love for one another. Looking for a special place to keep her feelings, Thương asks her friends where they keep their love for their parents. Her friends, a diverse array of children, share the ways they convey affection. These include a vocalized declaration like "I love you" as well as nonverbal actions that demonstrate appreciation and respect. Each of these examples is symbolically linked to a body part. One friend keeps it in his head and explains that trying his best and learning new things make his parents happy. Another friend keeps it in her heart, as doing fun things with her parents makes her happy. Thương also observes members of her family listening carefully, gardening, and cooking her favorite meal. This exploration of expressing familial devotion provides opportunities for social-emotional learning by connecting actions, both physical and emotional, with love. The gentle and affirming tone doesn't prioritize one form over another and subtly introduces the ways culture can influence our expressions and how we reciprocate affection. The friendly cartoon illustrations are done in a cheery mix of bright pastel colors, which reinforces the soothing comfort of unconditional love. Thương is Vietnamese, and her friends have a range of skin tones and hair colors. A Vietnamese rhyme reflecting the story's theme is reproduced in the backmatter along with an English translation. A sweet and charming tale that validates different ways of expressing love. (author's note, Vietnamese glossary) (Picture book. 4-8)

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September 1, 2021
Grades K-2 Vietnamese American Thuong is looking for a safe place to keep a very special feeling, and as she goes through her school day, she asks her friends where they keep love for their parents. Each friend gives her a different answer: One boy keeps it in his head, because learning things makes his parents happy. Another keeps his love for his parents in his belly, because when he eats all his vegetables it makes his mom happy. Thuong is delighted to discover the unique ways families express love for one another, connecting the physical expression of love with the emotional. Buu expands on the themes of love and family by exploring how love is expressed in different cultures, specifically between Vietnamese and American cultures, which she elaborates on in an author's note that includes a glossary of Vietnamese words used in the text. Luu's brightly colored pastel artwork warmly portrays characters of various racial backgrounds in homey, familiar settings. A sweet picture book about family, examining cultural differences from an uncommon perspective.

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August 13, 2021

PreS-Gr 3-Where do you keep the love for your family? That's the question Thu'o'ng asks her American friends. Each of her friends, who are from various cultural background, has a different answer, and her own Vietnamese family also has more than one kind of reply. This is a wonderful question to lob at children. The book allows readers to draw parallels with their own ideas while considering and honoring other cultures as well. The warmly colored artwork adds details about gender and ethnicity that children might not be able to guess from the names alone of the characters. A wonderful teaching tool for discussions about cultural diversity and how it is demonstrated in all kinds of ways, this book is also an excellent social emotional learning platform for showing the many ways to express love. VERDICT A recommended purchase, this book will have many uses, from story hour to the classroom.-Debbie Tanner, S. D. Spady Montessori Elem., FL

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