How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina Friedman
Houghton Mifflin, 1984.
A little girl tells the story of how her parents met & the how their cultural differences fused together to create her hybrid culture. Written in English with watercolor artwork that subtly uses Japanese techniques, this book addresses some misconceptions the narrator’s parents had to overcome in order to get to know each other in a way that readers, young & old, will enjoy. Laugh along with the characters as they learn not everything they learn about each other’s culture is necessarily true.
I found this book to be humorous as it depicted an American man learning how to use chopsticks and a Japanese woman learning how to use utensils. I really enjoyed how it came from the little girls point of view, as she was explaining why she eats with both chopsticks and utensils at different meals. It is a great story that explores the different customs and traditions of other cultures but show that not all the cultures are similar as they may seem.
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