If your child is learning about immigration – past and present – try these stories
Coming to America: The Story of Immigration
Author: Betsy Maestro
Illustrator: Susannah Ryan
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
From the early explorers to the present day, our country is a nation of immigrants. In Coming to America: The Story of Immigration all of us, young and old, are reminded of the rich diversity that makes our country what it is today. Beautifully told.
Emma’s Poem: The Voice of the Statue Liberty
Author: Linda Glaser
Illustrator: Claire A. Nivola
Publisher: Sandpiper, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Website
In 1883, Emma Lazarus wrote the words that gave voice to the Statue of Liberty: “…Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…” This is the story of the writer who composed these words, not only to help bring Lady Liberty to our shores, but to provide comfort, and a new home, to those seeing them for the first time.
Awards: Jane Addams Children’s Book Award; Junior Library Guild selection; A Sydney Taylor Honor Book; Oppenheim Toy Portfolio – Gold Medal Book; Amelia Bloomer Project best feminist children’s books
King of the Sky
Author: Nicola Davies
Illustrator: Laura Carlin
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Awards: The New York Times Book Review, Best Illustrated Children’s Book Award
Marianthe’s Story: Painted Words/Spoken Memories
Author: Aliki
Illustrator: Aliki
Publisher: Greenwillow Books, an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
This story – written from the perspective of a young girl who comes to America – shows what it’s like, through pictures and words, to enter a new school, in a new country, with a new language.
Awards: Arkansas Diamond Primary Book Award Reading List
The Matchbox Diary
Author: Paul Fleischman
Illustrator: Bagram Ibatoulline
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Recommended Age Range: 6 to 9
A collection of matchboxes, each holding a piece of history – this is the premise for The Matchbox Diary – a wonderful book about a young boy’s journey to Ellis Island. As told to his great-granddaughter, each item brings to life what so many immigrants, at the turn-of-the-century, experienced coming to America. Beautifully illustrated.
Awards: Amazon.com Best Books of the Year 2013; Kirkus Reviews Best Children’s Books of 2013; 2014 Christopher Award Winner, Ages 6 & up; Winner, IRA Notable Books for a Global Society, 2014; 2014 CLA Notable Children’s Books in the English Language Arts; IRA Children’s Choices 2015: Young Readers (Grades 3 & 4); 2014 IRA Teachers’ Choices, Intermediate Readers; A Junior Library Guild Selection
The Quiet Place
Author: Sarah Stewart
Illustrator: David Small
Publisher: Margaret Ferguson Books, Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Recommended Age Range: 5 to 9
Website
The Quiet Place is a wonderful story about a young girl’s journey from Mexico to America in 1957. In the same style as The Gardener, Isabel’s heartfelt letters to her aunt provide a window into her joys and fears, as well as her discoveries, including a love of words. When a box arrives, Isabel (with a little help from her brother) makes a “Quiet Place” to read, write, and most of all, feel safe. And, just as it grows in beauty and strength; so does Isabel’s confidence, comfort, and love for her new life. A gem.
Awards: Kirkus Reviews Best Children’s Book of 2012; NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2013
Wishes
Author: Mu’o’n Thi Van
Illustrator: Victo Ngai
Publisher: Orchard Books, an Imprint of Scholastic Inc.
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Website
Awards: A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection; Children’s Book Council Hot Off the Press Pick; ABA Kids Indie Next List Pick; Indie Children’s Illustrated “Another Indie Pick;” Red Tricycle’s “Best Children’s Books of 2021, so far”