"Baba Borzog's favorite teacup is sitting
on the kitchen counter next to his samovar.
He liked hot Ceylon tea with a splash of
rose water and a fig cookie.
I don't really like fig cookies. But he always
gave me one, and I always took one because
we didn't share many words."
I don't know how this book got lost in my TBR pile; it did! I certainly don't want to miss telling you about it in hopes that you will look for it for your home or school.
Our young female narrator wakes up one day after her baba borzog forgot to wake up, and bites her mother's toe. She wants to wake her, while also wishing she had been there yesterday to do the same thing for her beloved grandfather. Today is the day she will accompany her mother to his house. Once inside, she is awash with reminders and memories. No more jumping on his bed to awaken him; it doesn't feel at all the same. No mints in his pockets, only wrappers. His slippers are too big for her to wear safely, so she takes them off while coming down the stairs.
"Baba Borzog spoke Farsi loudly but English quietly."
Though they did not speak each other's language, the two had no problem communicating the love they felt.
The story takes a gentle look at loss and allows the narrator to speak freely about all she loved about her many visits with her grandfather. Nahid Kazemi is able to capture that same softness in her pastel images. As the story concludes with a final goodbye wave to Baba, the sour cherry tree becomes a focal point with its intense green that seems to signal hope, joy and new life.
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