Ghosts, Motivation And Family Bonds Make ‘Sauerkraut’ a Welcomed Kid Lit Book

We first meet the main character of Sauerkraut, Hans Dieter Schenk, on the back cover of the book — he “is a maker-an inventor, someone who builds cool stuff.” Once we get into the pages of this novel, we learn that H.D. is a boy with brown skin, brown eyes, and naturally curly hair set in short locs. He’s Kikora’s son, Asad’s big brother and “that Black kid with the white dad and the weird name — the older one”. He’s a biracial kid, living with a German-American father and a African American mother in the U.S. while also aware that the world very much sees him as a Black boy. He’s likeable, a thinker, a planner, a builder and so much more. H.D. is the perfect personality to bring you into his world. Oh, and he wants to make sauerkraut with the help of his Oma’s ghost.

The Creators of Sauerkraut Author Kelly Jones has experience writing children books with protagonist who are kids of color. She wrote the 12-year-old Latina Sophie in UNUSUAL CHICKENS FOR THE EXCEPTIONAL POULTRY FARMER . There is certainly care and consideration in the writing of H.D.’s character. His portrayal is thoughtful and nuanced, not forced or caricatured. I really enjoyed HD’s first meeting with the ghost that is revealed to be his Oma. With it he has some really hilarious color commentary to himself about speaking to your ancestors and how he knows for certain that he is not T’Challa aka Black Panther. It’s great to see BNP fave Paul Davey’s art on the cover and on the pages of Sauerkraut. Davey ha…