My Mother’s Tongues
Uma Menon and Rahele Jomepour Bell
Walker Books

Sumi’s mother speaks two languages, Malayalam because she grew up in Kerala and English because she learned it at school and having emigrated to the USA ten years back, continues doing so now sometimes using both when she talks to her daughter. Sumi the narrator was born in the United States, uses Malayalam at home with her family and as a result of listening carefully to others at school and around the neighbourhood, describes herself as having two tongues like her mother. She goes on to say that when she visits Kerala with her family each summer she uses Malayalam with her relations and her ability to understand and speak it is improving.

She explains that as her family tell her, if she stops using a language she might forget it. I know that to be true with my speaking of Hindi. The more languages a person learns and speaks, the more people s/he is able to converse with: Sumi’s aunt for example is able to use Malayalam, English, Hindi and Spanish.

But imagine how many opportunities a person might have who is multilingual: that’s what Sumi aspires to. I love that she concludes by saying ‘Having a tapestry of tongues will be my superpower.’

This celebration of learning and using new languages is superb, showing how it helps overcome differences and borders of all kinds as we connect with people from all over the world.

Using canvas backgrounds and quilted textures, Jomepour Bell emphasizes the weaving theme of Uma Menon’s lyrical text in this illuminating book. Everybody should read this especially those who say such things as ‘English is spoken all over the world, so why bother to learn another language.’