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The refugee crisis around the world has been featured in the news a great deal recently and Rosemary McCarney's nonfiction picture book Where Will I Live? is a moving and important introduction for readers who still might be a bit too young to understand all the nuances of this complex and timely topic.
McCarney boils this intricate issue down to the basics with simple text beginning "...When Soldiers fight or danger comes families must pack their things and search for a new place to live." It features stirring and poignant photographs of refugee children and families all over the world--from Hungary to Rwanda, Lebanon to Greece, and beyond--who have been displaced from their homes and cities and countries and are looking for a new place to belong. In portraying the moments of sadness and dire need as well as moments of forming bonds of fellowship even in such harrowing circumstances, McCarney shows just how much human beings have in common and how the need--not just for shelter, but for community--is universal no matter where in the world someone is born.
This precursory resource on refugees is both poignant and topical, and should prove useful as an introduction to this current worldwide issue for children in kindergarten through second grade. In order to further supplement this simple nonfiction picture book with more concrete information, look for more detailed and complex resources in our children's nonfiction section.
CJ and his nana have a long trip back from church and, unlike his friend Colby, whose family has a car, they have to take the bus to get there. As they make their way back to their neighborhood, CJ and his nana experience all the sights, sounds, and feelings their vibrant and diverse city has to offer. Nana teaches CJ to see the beauty all around him, even in unexpected and gritty places, and when they arrive at their destination--a soup kitchen--both CJ and the reader come to appreciate the importance of spiritual richness over material wealth.
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña is a moving and joyous celebration of the little things in life, and Christian Robinson's vibrantly heartwarming illustrations are reminiscent of classic Ezra Jack Keats. This multi-layered picture book is much more than a lively tour of a diverse city neighborhood--it's also a tribute to intergenerational relationships, empathy, compassion, and, above all, the joy of human connection.
A wonderful book to share with children ages 4 and up.
...You need your brain to think, you need your heart to love. A long, long, time ago, well okay, 1940, it wasn't always easy to breathe. A terrible outbreak of the disease tuberculosis has taken over the bodies of many United States citizens. Men, women and children were dying if they didn't get help quick. This is what happens to Evvy, only her family thinks it is best if she goes to Loon Lake - a place just for people who have tuberculosis! Evvy is put into a room with four other sick girls, and the story talks all about what it's like living and dying with this disease. BREATHING ROOM by Marsha Hayles is not a horror story, even though bad things happen. It IS a good historical fiction with interesting pictures and posters from that era. Evvy becomes good friends with many that come and go, and learns a lot about the importance of breathing. For 5th through 8th grades.
February 2013
