Mika, who likes things to be perfect, loves the pottery teacup from Japan her Obaachan gave her. The white and blue colors remind her of the clouds and the sea, and it feels cool and heavy in in her hands. When Mika accidentally breaks the cup, she’s devastated. Obaachan assures her it can be fixed, but after it’s repaired, “Golden lines zigged across the blue. Golden lines zagged across the white.” Obaachan explains that this kind of repair is called kintsugi—“to join together with gold.” Mika isn’t sure about it—the cup is no longer perfect after all—but she realizes it still reminds her of the beauty of the sea, this time during a lightning storm she once saw. More importantly, with Obaachan’s help, she realizes accidents happen, and that imperfect doesn’t mean useless or unworthy of love. Sophisticated ideas explored through a child-centered, accessible story in this picture book about a Japanese American child and her grandmother. Warm, colorful mixed-media illustrations accompany the story.

*Named a Center for the Study of Multicultural Children's Literature Best Book of 2024*

Author Waka T. Brown and artist Yuko Jones join forces for this picture book about a young girl who learns to appreciate life's imperfections when her grandmother teachers her about the Japanese art form kintsugi.

Miki Amelia Masuda liked everything in her life to be perfect. Her room was immaculately clean. She only ate round cookies, not the broken ones. And if a stuffed animal had a tear in it, she couldn't bear to look at it. So when she accidentally drops and breaks her favorite teacup, she's devastated. How can a broken teacup ever be perfect again?

Days later, Miki's grandmother, Obaachan, presents Miki with the fixed teacup. But it's not perfect! Each crack is highlighted by a gold streak of paint--almost as if to show off the imperfections!

What follows is one girl's journey to understanding that life isn't always perfect. Through the art of kintsugi, Waka and Yuko show readers--and Miki--that rips, cracks, and tears have their own stories to tell, ones that are meaningful in their own way.