Author Dezh Azaadand illustrator Nan Cao’s picture book Sour Cherries is a moving, personal story about an Afghan refugee child and the fruit that connects him to family and home.

My favorite day is in the summer,
picking cherries with my mother.

Sour Cherries follows a summer day as an Afghan child learns to make sour cherry jam, stew, and tea with his mother, just like she learned from her mother. Pull the stem, pop the seed—together, they carefully prep their family dishes while sharing stories of his grandmother and the place they come from.

Inspired by the author’s life, this warmhearted companion to The Carpet: An Afghan Family Story celebrates the taste of home.