Watercress Due 10/23/2024

Caldecott Medal Winner
Newbery Honor Book
APALA Award Winner

A story about the power of sharing memories—including the painful ones—and the way our heritage stays with and shapes us, even when we don’t see it.


New England Book Award Winner
New York Times Best Children’s Book of the Year
A Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book


While driving through Ohio in an old Pontiac, a young girl's Chinese immigrant parents spot watercress growing wild in a ditch by the side of the road. They stop the car, grabbing rusty scissors and an old paper bag, and the whole family wades into the mud to gather as much as they can.

At first, she's embarrassed. Why can't her family just get food from the grocery store, like everyone else? But when her mother shares a bittersweet story of her family history in China, the girl learns to appreciate the fresh food they foraged—and the memories left behind in pursuit of a new life.

Together, they make a new memory of watercress.

Author Andrea Wang calls this moving, autobiographical story “both an apology and a love letter to my parents.” It’s a bittersweet, delicate look at how sharing the difficult parts of our histories can create powerful new moments of family history, and help connect us to our roots.

Jason Chin’s illustrations move between China and the American Midwest and were created with a mixture of traditional Chinese brushes and western media. The dreamy, nostalgic color palette brings this beautiful story to life.

An endnote from the author describes her personal connection to the story, and an illustrator’s note touches on both the process of the painting, and the emotional meaning brought to the work.


Do not write in, draw in, or highlight in books. These are considered negligent damage and are the responsibility of the borrower Do not copy, publish, or otherwise plagiarize materials. Wash hands before handling books; oil stains, grease stains, solvents, dirt, food, water damage, and other damage caused by neglect is considered the responsibility of the borrower 

 

Please note that you can only renew a book once, and after 14 days the book or books must be returned into stock in order to allow for equal and equitable access to our tools for all users. Users who renew books for an additional 7 days will need to wait at least one week before checking that tool out again. Renewal of tools can be done between days 5-7 of your rental as long as another customer does not have the tool reserved during that time.  

 

Please be sure to return books on your listed due dates to avoid service interruptions to other customers. If a customer has a history of late returns, we may put your account on probation until good customer standing can be reinstated. Late returns do not count towards your new user period. 

 

Users who pose problems with timely returns, or problematic behaviors such as circumventing bans or our terms of service in any way may be subject to denial of service without warning or explanation. 

 

The content found in the books that collectively comprise the Carhartt Workshop Resource Library is meant to be purely informational and does not constitute advice on behalf of The Carhartt Workshop or its staff. The Resource Library is meant to provide offerings with content that is true and accurate as of the publishing date and to the best of Carhartt Workshop’s understanding. Carhartt Workshop, however, provides no assurance regarding the accuracy or applicability of any of the contents found within the Resource Library. Furthermore, Carhartt Workshop accepts no responsibility for and shall not be held liable in connection with the use and application of any information found in books in the Resource Library, including but not limited to any liability for errors, inaccuracies, omissions, opinions, or misleading or defamatory statements. Users of the Resource Library are encouraged to thoroughly research their projects and should consult multiple vetted sources of information before attempting to complete any and all projects or instructions found in any books that are offered through the Carhartt Workshop.  

Due to the nature of the Carhartt Workshop Resource Library collection, references to any specific commercial product, process, person or service, even by way of trademark or manufacturer, by no means implies an endorsement, recommendation, or bias held by Carhartt Workshop. Any and all opinions expressed in the contents of the Carhartt Workshop Resource Library are solely those of their respective authors and, unless expressly stated otherwise, are not those of Carhartt Workshop or its staff.