Home at Last

“It’s a touching story that speaks to both immigrant and non-immigrant families without guise or pretension.” –Midwest Book Review

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Description
Ana Patino is adjusting well to her new life in the United States, but her mother is having a difficult time because she doesn_t speak English. When Ana_s baby brother falls ill, Mama tries to get help, but no one can understand her. Now convinced of the need to learn the native language, Mama agrees to take English lessons. As her knowledge of the English language grows, so does her sense of confidence and belonging.

Reviews & Accolades
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People

“A story about new beginnings…The characters’ growth and new experiences show how a family pulls together and makes its new surroundings ‘home.’” –Diane Milliken, School Library Journal

“…this highlights a problem many immigrant children must deal with–the inability or unwillingness of a parent to learn English. The sturdy illustrations, handsomely executed in oils, are most successful when depicting the expressions of the characters: fear, pleasure, and, eventually, hope.” –Ilene Cooper, Booklist

“Appealing illustrations in oil convey the warmth of Ana’s family…A well-told story of triumph and family solidarity.” –Kirkus Reviews

“Although the tale focuses on Mama, it plays out through Ana’s point of view, and the child’s frustration with Mama’s stubbornness and her own inability to help in any direct way are powerfully conveyed. Davalos captures much of Mama’s pain and dignity in her expressive doe eyes. The text…is smooth and well paced, and listeners who take communication for granted will readily sense the vulnerability of a newcomer who has left her language at home.” –Bulletin for the Center of Children’s Books

“Home at Last by Susan Middleton Elya is a touching story about a mother from Mexico who relies on her 8-year-old daughter to translate for her. Not until she’s cheated at the grocery store does she bend to her daughter’s wishes and begin to learn English. Colorful illustrations by Felipe Davalos of Sacramento capture every nuance of the family’s isolation and struggles to adapt to their new land.” –Sacramento Bee

“Elya and Davalos have successfully put together a story that accurately depicts what life may be like for newcomers to the United States. Davalos’s double-page spread paintings are colorful and appealing.” –Bayviews, Association of Children’s Librarians

“With unsentimental grace, Home At Last tells a realistic, personal story of a Mexican family adjusting to new surroundings when they move to the United States. This picture book for older children is all the more moving when it reveals — through the eyes of their young daughter — the obstacles that adult non-English speaking immigrants face every day…It’s a touching story that speaks to both immigrant and non-immigrant families without guise or pretension.” –Midwest Book Review

Groups Represented
Mexican American

Themes
Immigration, learning English, family relationships

Setting
Urban United State

Author Research
TBA

Engagement Projects
VIEW a Teacher’s Guide for this title

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Under the Same Sky

“Joe’s immediate first-person narrative humanizes the workers, including the “illegal aliens,” and brings the reader close to their bitter struggle: the backbreaking, boring, sometimes dangerous work; and, for some, the constant dread of the police…” –Hazel Rochman, Booklist

“This look at migrant workers carefully lays out many of the issues involved, including the conflicts inherent in the immigration laws, and readers will come away with a new understanding and sympathy for these workers.” –Paula Rohrlick, KILATT

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Description
For his fourteenth birthday, Joe Pedersen wants a motorbike that costs nearly a thousand dollars. But his mom says the usual birthday gift is fifty dollars, and his dad wants Joe to earn the rest of the money himself and “find out what a real day’s work feels like.” Angry that his father doesn’t think he’s up to the job, Joe joins the Mexican laborers who come to his father’s farm each summer. Manuel, the crew boss, is only sixteen, yet highly regarded by the other workers and the Pedersen family. Joe’s resentment grows when his father treats Manuel as an equal. Compared with Manuel, Joe knows nothing about planting and hoeing cabbage and picking strawberries. But he toughs out the long, grueling days in the hot sun, determined not only to make money but to gain the respect of his stern, hardworking father. Joe soon learns about the problems and fears the Mexicans live with every day, and, before long, thanks to Manuel, his beautiful cousin Luisa, and the rest of the crew, Joe comes to see the world in a whole different way.

Reviews & Accolades
Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year, 2004

“Previously insensitive to the plight of the migrants, Joe begins to grasp the hardships, uncertainty, loyalty, and courage of these laborers who are often ridiculed and threatened by his peers and other whites in the community…With sensitivity and self-deprecating humor and reflection, Joe narrates a well-paced story that illuminates the need for understanding, tolerance, and discussion of the role and rights of migrant workers in the United States.” –Gerry Larson, School Library Journal

“Message drives the plot, and the lesson is heavily spelled out. But Joe’s immediate first-person narrative humanizes the workers, including the “illegal aliens,” and brings the reader close to their bitter struggle: the backbreaking, boring, sometimes dangerous work; and, for some, the constant dread of the police…There’s much to talk about here, especially if kids read this with Francisco Jimenez’s The Circuit (1997), which tells the story from the migrant workers’ viewpoint.” –Hazel Rochman, Booklist

“Despite a heavy-handed start and a somewhat predictable outcome, DeFelice’s story about a 14-year-old who learns to respect the migrant workers on his father’s farm offers much to absorb and stimulate readers…DeFelice shakes up convention, however, in a story line that draws attention to contradictory and confusing government policies regarding migrant workers. Without too much rigging of the scenes, she engineers a dramatic climax that allows Joe to demonstrate real courage-and that will let readers grapple with the notion that right and wrong are not always easily identifiable.” –Publisher’s Weekly

“DeFelice presents the plight of migrant workers in a realistic New York State setting. Readers will get a better understanding of the complexity of the migrant worker issue and the importance of these workers. They will relate to Joe’s young adult viewpoint, his interests, and the tension DeFelice aptly builds throughout the story. Joe evolves from someone totally clueless about the situation to someone willing to break the law to help others who live ‘under the same sky.’” –Sharon Salluzzo, Children’s Literature

“As Joe makes friends with his father’s workers, he discovers that sometimes a person has to do the wrong thing for the right reason. DeFelice’s characters are believable if a little wise beyond their years. Joe is a resolute, likeable character, and it is satisfying to watch him grow over the course of the book. He shows admirable bravery when he stands up to his friends. Important social issues are addressed without the narrative becoming preachy. There are lessons, but they are never sugarcoated, nor does the book hit the reader over the head with morality…This story will make readers think twice about their own prejudices.” –VOYA

“This look at migrant workers carefully lays out many of the issues involved, including the conflicts inherent in the immigration laws, and readers will come away with a new understanding and sympathy for these workers. This is a moving tale, with a valuable message…” –Paula Rohrlick, KILATT

“…DeFelice does deal successfully with contemporary issues about immigration and questions about civil disobedience at a level readers will understand…Suspense and romance keep the story going, at the same time that DeFelice conveys the vital work of migrant workers in US agriculture and draws attention to problems with immigration policies…this will serve those looking for an exploration of these issues and a larger role in fiction for migrant workers who are all too ignored in literature and real life.” –Kirkus Reviews

Groups Represented
Mexican American

Themes
Migrant life, multicultural friendships, illegal immigration, racial discrimination

Setting
Upstate New York

Author Research
TBA

Engagement Projects
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Uncle Rain Cloud

“This concise tale about bridging cultures, languages, and generations will strike a chord with many children who are both learning English and translating for their families. The sensitive telling may also help monolingual children understand their classmates who are in that situation.” –Ann Welton, School Library Journal

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Description
Uncle Tomàs looks after Carlos, whose hard-working parents get home late. He captivates his nephew with stories of the Aztec gods, but troubles him with his bad temper. Their relationship is sometimes stormy, until the day that they discover that they both struggle with English, and make a pact. Carlos will help his uncle with English–the source of his grouchiness–and Uncle Tomàs will teach him more stories, but in Spanish. They’ll know “twice as much as everyone else!”

Reviews & Accolades
“This concise tale about bridging cultures, languages, and generations will strike a chord with many children who are both learning English and translating for their families. The sensitive telling may also help monolingual children understand their classmates who are in that situation. Brisk pacing, sympathetic characters, and clear prose that uses embedded Spanish words effectively make a winner. Vandenbroeck’s acrylic and colored-pencil illustrations flesh out the narrative in soft, bright colors enhanced by dramatic shading.” –Ann Welton, School Library Journal

“Speaking Spanish in the U.S. is both barrier and celebration in this funny, touching picture book…Vandenbroeck’s bright, softly textured pictures in acrylic and colored pencil show the child’s bond with the hurt, angry man, who is a stranger in the supermarket but brings the richness of the ancestors’ stories into Carlos’ home. When Tìo Tomàs finally admits he feels “like a broken-winged bird,” and he lets his nephew teach him English (he’ll keep Spanish for important things), Carlos knows they both will have twice as much as everyone else. Johnston’s text is clear and poetic, “stretching the words out clear to Mexico,” and she smoothly weaves in the Spanish in a way that’s easy to understand. Many immigrant kids will recognize the role reversal: what it’s like to act as teacher to the adults in the family.” –Hazel Rochman, Booklist

Groups Represented
Mexican American

Themes
Family relationships, learning English, immigration, oral traditions, cultural traditions

Setting
United States

Author Research
TBA

Engagement Projects
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The School Library Journal published an extremely relevant article addressing the topic of teaching Islam and the Middle East in schools. It notes the challenges teachers face in approaching such topics and shares the experiences and suggestions of educators who have integrated the subject into their curriculum. It also provides a suggested list of resources and books for teachers. Read the whole article HERE.

Two education professors from Simon Fraser University in Canada wrote another relevant article about the portrayal of women, girls and Islam in young adult literature about the Middle East. Özlem Sensoy and Elizabeth Marshall raise important points about stereotypes or pitfalls some books fall into when writing stories about Islam and the Middle East. Some of the titles are ones that we have recognized on this site, such as The Breadwinner Trilogy by Deborah Ellis. Far from discouraging us from using these titles, however, Sensoy and Marshall suggest on how recognizing these stereotypes can be useful in teaching about this topic in the classroom. Read the article HERE.

STORIES build understanding.

UNDERSTANDING builds neighborhoods.

NEIGHBORHOODS build a strong city.

I’m Your Neighbor is currently piloting a community-wide read in the city of Portland, Maine. I’m Your Neighbor, Portland features nine books, both fiction and non-fiction, set in Maine and written by regional authors.  The collection of books feature multicultural friendships and immigration stories that reflect shifts in Portland’s cultural makeup, with immigrants and refugees coming from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia over the last 30 years. Throughout 2013, Portland’s new arrivals and long-term residents will come together to read and discuss books and to attend related cultural events.

Learn more about the project, books and events at www.ImYourNeighborPortland.org

The nine books are: A Path of Stars, Bread Song, I Remember Warm Rain, Moon Watchers, My Friend Jamal, New Mainers, Out of Nowhere, Something About America, and The Good Braider.

Her contribution adds to the ongoing discussion we have here at I’m Your Neighbor Books and speaks to the mission of this project. We’re glad to see that others agree with us too. We’re also pleased as punch that she mentions our own Anne Sibley O’Brien and I’m Your Neighbor in her post!

We were especially thrilled to find this new teaching resource from Alanna Books, the UK publisher of My Friend Jamal. It is an online and interactive version of the book that links readers to definitions, resources and factual information as they flip through the pages. Teachers, parents and students can learn background information like why some people like Jamal’s family have to leave their homeland, and explanations about Muslim culture, from foods, daily prayer and the headscarf.

Note: An error we found with the site is that the “Next” button does not work on page 11. However if you change the URL to http://www.alannabooks.com/jamal/12_Jamal.html (or click here), you can access page 12 and continue the rest of the book.

Bread Song

2006 Asian Pacific American Librarians Association Honor Picture Book

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Description
Hoping to make eight-year-old Chamnan, a new immigrant from Thailand, feel more at home, the owner of a Portland, Maine bakery invites him and his grandfather to hear the bread sing.

Reviews & Accolades
2006 Asian Pacific American Librarians Association Honor Picture Book

Groups Represented
Thai American

Themes
Immigration, Family relationships, community

Setting
Portland, Maine

Author Research
While minister of First Parish in Portland, my favorite stop was for a cup of coffee and a lemon poppy seed muffin at Standard Bakery. Early one morning in search of a picture book story, I asked the owner, “Alison is there something so unique, like a secret in the bakery that you can share with me?”

Without hesitation she answered, “All bakers know the secret of what’s called the “Bread Song” – when we take the newly baked loaves out of the oven at dawn, they snap, crackle and wonderfully sing!”

Before the sun was up the next morning, I attended this life changing concert, and found my calling for what became Bread Song. Twenty-five steps from Standard Bakery was a Thai restaurant. I knew that for many new neighbors coming from around the world that simply speaking in English was an unsurmountable task that made the walk into an English speaking bakery an emotional challenge.

I wondered about the impact of a new neighbor hearing the bread sing, and how it would loosen the tongue of a child so to feel more at home in a strange land.

“Aha!”

Salman Rushdie knew this secret when he wrote, ”My book celebrates hybridity, impurity, intermingling, the transformation that comes of new and unexpected combinations of human beings, cultures, ideas, politics, movies, songs…Mélange, hotchpotch, a bit of this and a bit of that is how newness enters the world…My book is for change by fusion, change by conjoining. It is a love-song…”

Engagement Projects
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A Game for Swallows: To Die, to Leave, to Return

“For young readers, “A Game for Swallows” will come as a revelation. At a time when the Middle East is still in turmoil and when Americans have suffered losses of electricity and other necessities during recent storms and floods, this is a story that will hit home even as it causes young, impressionable eyes to look at life abroad.” –The New York Times

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Description
When Zeina was born, the civil war in Lebanon had been going on for six years, so it’s just a normal part of life for her and her parents and little brother. The city of Beirut is cut in two by bricks and sandbags, threatened by snipers and shelling. East Beirut is for Christians, and West Beirut is for Muslims. When Zeina’s parents don’t return from a visit to the other half of the city, and the bombing grows ever closer, the neighbors in her apartment house create a world indoors for Zeina and her brother, where they can share cooking lessons and games and gossip. Together they try to make it through a dramatic evening in the one place they hoped they would always be safe—home.

Reviews & Accolades
“…Abirached approaches her personal story ambitiously, weaving the stories of her family members and their circle of neighbors and acquaintances into a tapestry of everyday life in war-torn East Beirut. Their tales are fascinating, and often brutal in their details…Less a story than a portrait of a family and a city and a culture under siege, the narrative unfolds somewhat disjointedly, intentionally perhaps — as a means of conveying the haphazard and precarious nature of life in a city beset by civil war….The profound dislocation of living in a war zone is palpable on every page. And an ominous question hangs over it all: Will Abirached’s parents return? And if they do, what exactly will they be returning to? The book’s strengths are myriad. Abirached is a lovely artist, and her characters’ faces are remarkably expressive. There is much humor, a welcome relief from the chaos and heartache of the human stories within. For young readers, “A Game for Swallows” will come as a revelation. At a time when the Middle East is still in turmoil and when Americans have suffered losses of electricity and other necessities during recent storms and floods, this is a story that will hit home even as it causes young, impressionable eyes to look at life abroad.” –The New York Times

“A stark look at the civil war in Lebanon in the 1980s…Through austere black-and-white illustrations (with a detectable influence from Persepolis’ Marjane Satrapi), Abirached easily conveys the overarching sense of unease and how something as simple as a visit to grandma’s can inspire fear. Abirached’s readers will instantly empathize with those who do not readily have access to simple luxuries many take for granted—running water, electricity or the simple return of our loved ones from an outing—and this may perhaps spur them to re-examine what they may have otherwise overlooked.

 Quietly mesmerizing and thought-provoking.” –Kirkus Reviews

“Bold, graphic, black-and-white images are visually and emotionally striking. Excellent use of maps and diagrams provides reference points and enhances understanding of spatial relationships. Unique panel placement includes several sequences of horizontal strips, read as columns. Images portray elapsed time, such as repeated smoking and countdown panels, and control pacing while revealing mounting tension. Excruciating wait time is depicted with cumulative “tic” and “toc” filling successive panels. Circular images of an embracing family contrast with the stark linear images of a war-torn country. Warmth and humor of daily life is shown in baking and storytelling, and wedding-dress close-ups touchingly highlight a mother’s worry over soiling the hem, masking her worry over sniper fire. This superb memoir is destined to become a classic.” –School Library Journal

“We learn about Lebanon and the conflict there through the stories of the children’s neighbors, who gather in the family apartment as shells blast the streets outside. Physically, Abirached’s illustrations look a lot like Satrapi’s black and white blocky style. Abirached adds value by integrating several maps and the odd photograph which help provide context for the reader who might not be intimately familiar with this often overlooked country and its history. Giving the story the framework of this one night and the parade of neighbors works well as a way of getting to the meat of how it feels to live inside a conflict-ridden zone. A valuable selection for any library.” –Children’s Literature

Groups Represented
Lebanese
Christian
Muslim

Themes
War, family relationships, community

Setting
Beirut

Author Research
TBA

Engagement Projects
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A Song for Bijou

Farrar handles race and the complexities of interracial relationships by implication, through Alex’s discovery of the vibrant, new (to him) world just blocks away. A solid, timely effort.” –Kirkus Reviews

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Description
Life for Alex Schrader has never involved girls. He goes to an all-boys prep school and spends most of his time goofing around with his friends. But all that changes the first time he meets Bijou Doucet, a Haitian girl recently relocated to Brooklyn after the earthquake-and he is determined to win her heart. For Bijou, change is the only constant, and she’s surprised every day by how different life is in America, especially when a boy asks her out. Alex quickly learns that there are rules when it comes to girls-both in Haitian culture and with his own friends. And Bijou soon learns that she doesn’t have to let go of her roots to find joy in her new life.

Told in alternating viewpoints against the vibrant backdrop of Haitian-American culture, Alex and Bijou take their first tender steps toward love in this heartwarming story.

Reviews & Accolades
“In this modern-day Romeo and Juliet romance, Farrar contrasts the cultures of two neighborhoods and two students in Brooklyn, N.Y….Courting Bijou proves problematic for Alex since Bijou’s strict uncle won’t let her leave the house unescorted—it takes creative strategizing, help from mutual friends, and breaking household rules for the two to get together…Alex and Bijou’s narrative voices are distinct and authentic. Readers will admire his heroic traits and sympathize with her conflicting loyalties.” –Publisher’s Weekly

“In alternating entries, Bijou and Alex tell their stories of attraction, cross-cultural complications, and the intricacies of seventh-grade society. Bijou begins to learn that accepting new customs does not mean betraying the old ones, and Alex learns that being a good friend is not always straightforward–and also how to play the Haitian rada drum. Farrar takes his time with this book, telling a quiet, sweet story about friendship and self-discovery…Bijou tries to honor her heritage, overcome past tragedy, and learn how to live in a new culture. Characters, both major and minor, are complex and believable. The portrayal of middle school is spot-on.” –VOYA

“Surviving middle school and puberty is an age-old challenge that video cameras and YouTube have only complicated, as vividly demonstrated in this enjoyable, seriocomic tale of new love, culture clash, adolescent social stratification and friendship…love leads [Alex] to unexpected places: to Flatbush and Haitian rara music, to discover a talent for drumming, to examine unquestioned values and priorities…Farrar handles race and the complexities of interracial relationships by implication, through Alex’s discovery of the vibrant, new (to him) world just blocks away. A solid, timely effort.” –Kirkus Reviews

Groups Represented
Haitian

Themes
Multicultural friendship, immigration, cultural traditions, cultural identity, cultural differences, family relationships

Setting
Brooklyn, New York

Author Research
TBA

Engagement Projects
Leave a comment and let us know how you use this title!