Sugar in Milk by Thrity Umrigar and Khoa Le (Review)

Title: Sugar in Milk
Author: Thrity Umrigar
Illustrator: Khoa Le
Type: Fiction
Genre: Children’s, Picture Book
Publisher: Running Press Kids
(Hachette Book Group)
Date published: October 6, 2020

A physical copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

When I first came to this country, I felt so alone. A young immigrant girl joins her aunt and uncle in a new country that is unfamiliar to her. She struggles with loneliness, with a fierce longing for the culture and familiarity of home, until one day, her aunt takes her on a walk. As the duo strolls through their city park, the girl’s aunt begins to tell her an old myth, and a story within the story begins.

A long time ago, a group of refugees arrived on a foreign shore. The local king met them, determined to refuse their request for refuge. But there was a language barrier, so the king filled a glass with milk and pointed to it as a way of saying that the land was full and couldn’t accommodate the strangers. Then, the leader of the refugees dissolved sugar in the glass of milk. His message was clear: Like sugar in milk, our presence in your country will sweeten your lives. The king embraced the refugee, welcoming him and his people.

⤖ My Review ⬻

What a wonderful and important book. And I’m not saying this because I myself am a two-time immigrant (even though this gives me a particular perspective when reading Sugar in Milk). I believe it’s important because of the current state the world is in, something that was emphasized a little more in the media before COVID hit–counties and individuals’ sentiment toward immigrants and refugees. I believe that children are born without prejudices and that it’s important to encourage them to remain that way. Kids books, I believe, are a good way to do this.

It’s unlikely that my children (when I have time) will ever experience being immigrants or refugees (although, we never quite know what life will bring), so I will make it one of my priorities to teach them the importance of compassion and just caring for others–and Sugar in Milk will definitely be one of the books that I will read to them. This book will have a permanent residence in our home library, that’s for sure. I would also like to mention that the artwork in this book is also beautiful!

I become emotional even just thinking about the message that the author and illustrator, Thrity Umrigar and Khoa Le, are trying to get across with Sugar in Milk and recommend it not only for children but also for individuals of all ages and from all walks of life.

⤖ About the Contributors ⬻

A journalist for seventeen years, Thrity Umrigar has written for the Washington Post, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and other national newspapers, and contributes regularly to the Boston Globe’s book pages. Thrity is the winner of the Cleveland Arts Prize, a Lambda Literary award and the Seth Rosenberg prize. She teaches creative writing and literature at Case Western Reserve University. The author of The Space Between Us, Bombay Time, and the memoir First Darling of the Morning: Selected Memories of an Indian Childhood, she was a winner of the Nieman Fellowship to Harvard University. She has a Ph.D. in English and lives in Cleveland, Ohio. (from the publisher’s website)”

Khoa Le is a Freelance illustrator, graphic designer and painter based in HCMC, Vietnam, graduated from HCMC University of Fine Art, Graphic design department.