In this article, the author considers the affordances of bringing theories of affect (e.g., Davies, 2014; Dutro, 2019; Leander & Boldt, 2013) to understandings of meaning-making with culturally sustaining picturebooks within an intervention setting. Culturally sustaining picturebooks are defined as books reflective of multiple languages and evocative of transnational identities and experiences. Drawing from a two-year collaborative inquiry with five first and second graders and their teacher, the author considers how culturally sustaining picturebooks created opportunities for multilingual students to cross thresholds and experience vitality.