by Andrea Wang (Author), Kana Urbanowicz (Illustrator)

World War II was over, but in Japan, lines for a simple bowl of ramen noodles wound down the sidewalk. What Momofuku Ando did next would change food forever. Andrea Wang, author of Watercress (a Newberry honor book and winner of the Caldecott Medal), tells the true story behind the creation of one of the world's most popular foods.

"An inspiring story of persistence and an ideal purchase for any collection." School Library Journal, STARRED review

2021 Nutmeg Book Awards Nominee

Winner of the 2020 Sakura Award

Read Across America Book of the Month, May 2021

Center for Multicultural Children's Literature Best Book of 2019 List

Smithsonian Magazine '10 Best Children's Books of 2019′ List

Every day, Momofuku Ando would retire to his lab--a little shed in his backyard. For years, he'd dreamed about making a new kind of ramen noodle soup that was quick, convenient, and tasty for the hungry people he'd seen in line for a bowl on the black market following World War II. Peace follows from a full stomach, he believed.

Day after day, Ando experimented. Night after night, he failed. But Ando kept experimenting.

With persistence, creativity, and a little inspiration, Ando succeeded. This is the true story behind one of the world's most popular foods.

Author Biography

Andrea Wang, the Newberry Honor and APALA Award winning author of the Caldecott Medal winning Watercress, loves noodles, food, and noodling about food. A former environmental scientist, she appreciates Ando's scientific spirit, persistence in the face of failure, and passion for making the world a better place.Andrea lives in Colorado with her family and their dog, Mochi. Sometimes they have instant ramen for breakfast. You can find out more about Andrea at andreaywang.com.

Kana Urbanowicz works mainly as an illustrator and likes to draw people eating delicious food. Apart from illustration, she also creates animations, comics, and even clay figurines. She lives in Kanagawa, Japan, with her artist husband. By a lucky coincidence, there is a Momofuku Ando museum nearby, so she went there for some inspiration and noodle fun. After reading Ando's biography, Kana is happy that she could take part in making this book happen! Read more about her works at tekumushi.com.