I received a copy of The Words We Share by Jack Wong from Annick Press in exchange for an honest review.

In The Words We Share, Angie helps her father out whenever he needs to communicate with those who speak in English. When the two arrived in Canada, they both had little English but through school, Angie has learned a lot and can now help her father out as they continue to speak in Cantonese with one another. When Angie helps her father make signs in English for his workplace where he works as a janitor, she comes up with an idea to help local businesses in the areas who may also need English signs. When a mistake occurs due to one of her signs, her father goes with her to resolve the matter - not through Cantonese, not through English, but through a language that Angie cannot understand. Turns out that Cantonese is not the only language her father is fluent in - he's also fluent in Hakka, a different Chinese dialect. 

What a beautiful story about languages and the immigrant experience. I really liked how languages were what connected Angie to her father and the new country that they are now living in. Throughout the story, we see Angie's father relying on Angie a lot due to the language barrier but how it is through her father, that she is also able to face her difficulties and problems. I think that Angie and her father's experiences are ones that will resonate and connect with many others, as it did for me. It was such a pleasant surprise for me personally as my father's family does speak Hakka - or rather my paternal grandma did. And while she could also speak Cantonese when I was growing up, she started to only speak in Hakka near the end, and I had to rely on my dad and uncle to communicate with her.