Cover Image: The Most Beautiful Thing

The Most Beautiful Thing

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Member Reviews

This was a quick, wholesome read about a true story of a girl growing up in a family with little money and wanting more than they can provide because of it. The art is absolutely beautiful, and the messages of giving to others before yourself and respecting your family and elders, which are demonstrated in all of the times that the protagonist takes care of her grandmother, and of your imperfections being what make you beautiful and unique are very good ones that are still relevant today.

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A wonderfully illustrated sweet story. It shows how important family is and not to take what we have for granted! This is a great bed time story! Very great book!

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"The Most Beautiful Thing" weaves together the stories of several generations of a Hmong immigrant family, particularly focusing on the bond between the author and her beloved grandmother. Without dwelling too much on them, the story touches on issues such as poverty and immigration, and can be used as a good starting point to discuss these issues with young readers.

Khoa Le's illustrations are, as always, absolutely gorgeous and really bring the story to a new level.

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The Most Beautiful thing is lovingly illustrated and very touching - a children's picture book that looks at the relationship between a young Hmong girl and her aging grandmother, highlighting resilience of refugees and the beauty that can be found even in hardship. I like my kids books with a little more overt activism - but the way that this book includes a family experiencing poverty is a good jumping point for discussions with little readers about assumptions we make about people when not everyone has access to the same things (but how they should!). That being said, this story underscores the values of inclusion and collectivism and provides representation for southeast asian girls, a beautiful example that their stories matter. I love that it incorporated Hmong words and language throughout - it provides an excellent opportunity for parents and children to learn new words and practice the pronunciation. I would love to pick this up for my niece!

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Sometimes i am reminded of the most valuable lessons of life through children's book; and this was definitely one of those books.
I fell in love with the illustration, and the cover art was the first thing that dragged my attention.
The connection between the little girl and her grandma, taking care of the elderly and respecting them, accepting who you are and finding peace and happiness by doing so and a lot more!
I enjoyed this book and would read this book to my future kids one day

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If you are trying to add some diversity to your library’s collection, then this picture book fits the bill. I work in a very poor, rural area, and I’m not sure this book would be checked out often in my school’s library. The illustrations are beautiful, and the story is very meaningful and sweet; however, I think my students would find the story difficult to follow simply because of the foreign words. I appreciate that the author provided translations and a pronunciation guide at the beginning of the story; I believe I would need to do a lot of front-loading for my students follow along.

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I thought this was an adorable read
It brought back memories of my own Grandma and how I cherish all her tales and my time with her. That's what I want my grandkids to have of me.

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A beautifully illustrated, sweet story showing the importance of both family, and not taking what we have for granted.
The story is simple but poignant and as someone who currently has to read lots of bed time stories, I feel this one should go down well and the illustrations are gorgeous.

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Great read! This true story shows Kalia, a young girl living with her family. Although the family does not have a lot of money, they have a lot of love. Especially between Kalia and her Grandmother. The story revolves around Kalia making the best out of not having a lot, until she wants braces, and the family cannot afford them. Kalia realizes that braces will not bring her beauty, because it is the beauty inside that really matters.
My favourite thing about this book is the respect that the children have for their elderly Grandmother-I think that is an extremely special relationship to highlight. The respect for elderly people is an important message that isn't seen a lot in today's society. It is important that children understand how special these relationships can be, they shouldn't be taken for granted. The lessons we can learn about elderly people and how that is showcased in the book is awesome. The illustrations are incredible! I think this is an important story that can be read perhaps to older children, I found the language a bit more advanced. Great resource when discussing families and perhaps different financial situations.

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I don’t often review children’s books, but I have to say that The Most Beautiful Thing caught my eye. The cover illustration is gorgeous and my own relationship with my grandmother fueled my desire to check this out.

The story is about a young Hmong American girl whose grandmother was a staple in her life and whom she helped care for and who helped raise her. As it should be in any culture, it is a privilege to be able to take care of one’s elders and hear their stories and history. The book talks about the tales that her grandmother told her when she would ask about the cracked soles of her feet and the little ways she changed herself or things she would do to show respect and love to her grandmother. These short tales and anecdotes mingle with reality of life of the author as a child and are emphasized by the sweeping, colorful illustrations throughout, which takes the reader on a beautiful journey. The writing is very matter of fact and gives a glimpse into the lives of the people involved.

Arguably, the overarching theme of the story is that the most important and beautiful things in life are the things we can inherit from our parents and grandparents. Not just genetically, but the stories that they pass down, the lessons that they can teach us, and the love they both give us and that they plant within us. This is an important lesson that every child should learn, especially now.

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