The Kimchi Fridge
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Published by Little Bee BooksWritten by Tina Cho
Illustrated by Cindy Kang
Publication Date: October 6, 2026
⭐️ Kirkus Starred Review
Korean American Cho enhances her exuberantly entertaining text with thousands-of-years-old kimjang history; her author’s note mentions the global growth of kimchi consumption. Korean American Kang’s colorfully energetic spreads are an irresistible invitation to join the delectable party. A multilayered feast for the senses—singing, boogie-ing, salivating to Korea’s national culinary treasure.
— Kirkus Reviews
— Kirkus Reviews
On a cold day, Mina wants to warm up with a bowl of her Omma’s kimchi stew. But when she slides to the kimchi fridge . . . It’s empty! Text the aunties and neighbors, it’s kimjang time! Soon Mina’s home is filled with the warmth of laughter, family, and friendship as everyone gathers to make their own batch of mouth-watering kimchi. But when Mina realizes that her kimchi needs time to ferment and won’t be ready to eat for months, what can she do to satisfy her craving?
From the author of Rice From Heaven and The Ocean Calls, comes a joyful, laugh-out-loud kimchi adventure filled with Korean food, k-pop dances, a great recipe, and a loving reminder that good things come to those who wait.
⭐️ Publishers Weekly Starred Review
A kimchi emergency launches a day of collaborative cooking in this zippy story from Cho and Kang. When Mina cries, “Omma, I need kimchi stew! It’s urgent!” and the Korean-cued family’s kimchi fridge proves empty, Omma ties back her hair, dons an apron and rubber gloves, and tells her daughter to text the aunties: “It’s kimjang time.”
In an earthy palette enlivened with pops of red, bustling, shape-based illustrations depict still-raw cabbage in tight ovals, tubs and colanders in capacious circles, and fermenting containers in rectangles and squares. Incorporating cultural and intergenerational knowledge, this delicious narrative shows how many hands make light work.
In an earthy palette enlivened with pops of red, bustling, shape-based illustrations depict still-raw cabbage in tight ovals, tubs and colanders in capacious circles, and fermenting containers in rectangles and squares. Incorporating cultural and intergenerational knowledge, this delicious narrative shows how many hands make light work.
— Publishers Weekly