Florence, Debbi Michiko. Jasmine Toguchi, Mochi Queen. Illustrated by Elizabet Vuković. Farrar Straus Giroux, 2017. 115 pages (978–0–374–30410–2)

Ages 6-9

Eight-year-old Japanese American Jasmine Toguchi makes her debut in an engaging and lively book for newly independent readers. Jasmine is determined to help make mochi for the New Year, even though she’s only 8 and family tradition says girls start when they’re 10. Tradition also says girls and women form the rice into balls after it’s been pounded by the men and boys. When she can’t convince her mom or Obaachan to let her help form the mochi, Jasmine appeals to her dad to help pound it, only to discover it’s a lot harder than she realized. After everything will she fail?  Jasmine’s terrific first-person voice is so believably 8, and so is her behavior. Her reactions to others are rooted in her emotions of the moment, leaving room for her to be surprised when people behave in unexpected ways, and room for her to consider what that means. The book includes occasional black-and-white spot illustrations. ©2018 Cooperative Children’s Book Center