My Mom Loves Me More Than Sushi

Linda Ludke is a children’s librarian at the London Public Library.

Culinary treats from around the world are enjoyed by a mother and her
daughter in this charming book. They eat sushi with chopsticks and dunk
biscotti into their drinks, savouring both the food and the time spent
together. At home they bake louska bread and then “tear it apart and
nibble it like mice.” When making jambalaya, they “dance to crazy
music.” No matter how tasty their meals, the girl knows that Mom loves
her best.

The brief text appeals to the senses as the little girl describes the
buttery smell of crepes, the spicy sausages that make her eyes water,
and the tiny grains of couscous that tickle her throat. Ashley
Spires’s cartoon watercolours capture the comforts of slurping hot
canja soup on an autumn day. A small picture of the food along with a
flag noting the country of origin appears below the text. The family
pets pop up on each page, often in humorous situations: Beagle carries a
towering plate of Egyptian megadarra on his head, and the Siamese cat
tries to scale a multi-layered Swedish smorgastarta. This is a warm
celebration of multiculturalism. Recommended.