By Yevgenia Neyberg
Published by Eerdman's Publishing Co., 2022
Mom's Review
First, I learned that the soup is actually "borsch," but is called "borscht" in the USA.
I love how the main character's feelings about the traditional food are represented in the illustrations. We see her on an island of sour cream, dumping soup on her grandmother's head, and paddling down a river of borsch. And, the girl's expressions! Oh my! If you've ever had a kid look at you with utter disdain for the meal you've served, you will see how on the nose Nayberg's art is!
It is only much later in life, after the girl has been living in America and eating only American foods that she thinks she might miss the taste of Ukrainian food. Pulling out the recipes all the grandmothers gave her, from deep down in her trunk, she decides to give borsch a try. We might tell our kids, "You'll like it when you're older," but that doesn't do much for the kid now. I Hate Borsch! validates the disgust the girl feels and the delight the adults take in the traditional dish. Any kid who has been faced with a food they didn't want to each will feel this child's pain.
I found there to be 3 main takeaways from the text.
1. It's okay to not like a popular food.
2. It's okay if your tastes change.
3. It's worth holding onto your heritage when you join a new community.
But what really stood out was a lack of pressure - in no way did the reader feel like the girl was in the wrong for hating borsch. Sure, she had to eat it, but she never had to like it.
I Hate Borsch! has the best illustrations for the story that portrays a universal experience.
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Plus this is timely with the reference to pumpkin spice lattes in the list of American foods!
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