Skip to main content

Review: I Want to Be Spaghetti!


I Want to Be Spaghetti!
Written by Kiera Wright-Ruiz
Illustrated by Claudia Lam
New York: Kokila, 2023. Picture Book.

Ramen sits on a supermarket shelf and watches spaghetti noodles being chosen each and every day. They desperately wish they could be like spaghetti, but their attitude starts to shift once they're cooked. As a human prepares Ramen, they add chashu, an egg, narutomaki, and more! Ramen learns that they don't need to be spaghetti to be delicious or loved. Ramen learns to be proud of what makes them different, and that they are perfect just as they are.

This story is so cute, and the message behind the entire book is heartwarming and uplifting. Everyone is unique, just like the many variations of noodles, but that's what makes us special. The other ramen packages are a great addition to the story, even telling Ramen that "beauty can be found in diversity." This is a perfect picture book for anyone learning how to love themselves, and to remember how important and amazing our differences are. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

If You Like...KPop Demon Hunters

KPop Demon Hunters has been one of the most talked-about movies of the summer. If you loved this movie as much as I did, you don't want the magic (or the music) to stop. Try reading these books that touch on some of the same topics and themes as the animated hit! Brick Dust and Bones By M. R. Fournet New York: Feiwel and Friends, 2023. Fiction. 247 pages. Orphaned Marius works in the family business--as their cemetery's ghost caretaker. However, Marius also moonlights as a monster hunter in order to earn the costly Mystic currency he needs to bring his mother back from the dead. As the window to bring his mother back begins to close, Marius's exploits get more and more dangerous, and he may have set his sights on a monster too big to handle on his own. Like Mira, Marius longs for familial connection, and his work as a monster hunter will satisfy the thrill of demon hunting for fans the movie. Where's Halmoni? By Julie J. Kim Seattle, WA: Little Bigfoot, 2017. Comics. W...

Review: The Library in the Woods

  The Library in the Woods Written by Calvin Alexander Ramsey Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie Minneapolis, MN : Carolrhoda Books, 2025. Picture Book. I am always intrigued by picture books that tell stories from the past in beautiful and meaningful ways, leaving the reader educated, and also hopeful and inspired. This book definitely did that for me! The cover is a beautiful peek into the story waiting on the pages. Junior and his family have lived on a farm that is having a hard time producing what it needs to for the family to survive economically. The parents make the hard decision to move away from the farm and into the city. Junior misses a lot of things about his life in the country. However, when Junior's friends tell him about a library in the woods, things change for him in the best way! He is amazed by the seemingly endless collection of books, and is eager to check some out for his family. Junior excitedly borrows a few books, including one about a farmer for his dad ...

Review: Tumblebaby

Tumblebaby Written by Adam Rex Illustrated by Audrey Helen Weber New York : Neal Porter Books/Holiday House, 2024. Picture book. I love a funky picture book. Slumbering Tumblebaby rolls out the door and into a wonderfully meandering yarn, thwarting scoundrels and coyotes, scaling unclimbable mountains, and even building a community center in Colorado City. Adam Rex's text reads like a folksy tall tale, punctuated by funny lines and rhyming chants.  Weber's colorful, round illustrations feel a little Fauvist, a little cubist. It's a sort of "Oh, The Places You'll Go!"  but in reverse - we learn in the last few pages that, in fact, that baby was YOU! This revelation made my young son gasp, which made me choke up.  Tumblebaby is a surreal delight perfect for reading together.