The following was originally written on the Latin Baby Book Club.
With immigration reform such a hot topic nationally, I wanted to share this book with you. If you haven't read it, you should. It has personalized the issue for my children in a way that I'm not sure I could have done just by explaining what is being discussed on the news.
A Children's Picture Book on the Immigration Experience
My Diary from Here to There is actually based on the author's own true story. Pérez chronicles her own childhood experience of leaving her home in Ciudad Juárez after her father loses his job. To support the family, he decides to move them to California. But as he leaves to find work, Amada and her brothers and mother must stay with relatives. The book gives us an intimate look at Amada's thoughts and emotions, as she writes passages in her diary. It is immediately apparent that she enjoys a close and tender relationship with her father, who she thinks about daily, anxiously awaiting his letters while he is gone looking for work.
Gonzalez's illustrations are vibrant and active. You can see and feel the wind whipping Amada's hair back as they get in their car and drive away from home. And when she curls up under her blankets to write in her diary by flashlight, you can feel her soft socks and the warmth coming from her sleeping brother.
The book includes full text in both English and Spanish. It is best suited for children ages 4 and older.
I am really glad to see more and more Latino children's authors, sharing their own immigrations stories in books for children. What a valuable lesson they provide, helping to humanize an otherwise cold topic.
Parents and teachers, this is a great book to read when studying immigration, family relationships, leaving home, family responsibility, and more.
Gonzalez's illustrations are vibrant and active. You can see and feel the wind whipping Amada's hair back as they get in their car and drive away from home. And when she curls up under her blankets to write in her diary by flashlight, you can feel her soft socks and the warmth coming from her sleeping brother.
The book includes full text in both English and Spanish. It is best suited for children ages 4 and older.
I am really glad to see more and more Latino children's authors, sharing their own immigrations stories in books for children. What a valuable lesson they provide, helping to humanize an otherwise cold topic.
Parents and teachers, this is a great book to read when studying immigration, family relationships, leaving home, family responsibility, and more.
Purchase your copy here:
