At Ellis Island: A History in Many Voices

In a tribute to the millions who came to America through Ellis Island, the pair behind "Crossing the Delaware" weaves together a historical tapestry of real-life anecdotes with the fictional, first-person accounts of two childrens visitsnearly 100 years apartto the immigrant-processing station. The opening account (in blocky red typeface) features the thoughts of a contemporary young tourist recalling her great-great grandmothers arrival to the island. This narrative presents much of the books factual content (Children could not pass through alone. Sometimes they had to wait for days until an adult already in the country came to meet them). In blue script, a parallel story is told through the letters of Sera, a 10-year-old Armenian immigrant, coming to America at the turn of the 20th century. Shes writing to her mother, and its only when Sera is almost sent back (her father is late coming to claim her) that readers realize her mother died in a massacre. Back? Back to Armenia? But they will kill me! I will be dead like you, Mama. I scream, long and high, and turn to run. Seras epistolary tale incorporates other actual events, including the sinking of the passenger ship, "Mongolia". Krudops soft-edged, poignant gouache illustrations of Seras journey from ships rail to her fathers arms are juxtaposed with stark black-and-white archival images. Each spreads busy layout includes photographs of and quotations from actual immigrants. Though it may require rereading several pages to follow the threads of the separate voices, the effort is worth it. Peacock has seamlessly stitched together fact and fiction and presented a composite picture of courage and hope. Ages 7-10. "(June)" Copyright 2007 Publishers Weekly Used with permission.

Gr 4-6--A picture book that is stronger in concept than in execution. In a format similar to her "Crossing the Delaware" (S & S, 1998), Peacock describes the immigration experience to children. The first fictional narrative presented (in red type) is that of a modern child visiting Ellis Island, intertwining facts she has gathered about her family at the museum. The second narrative thread is delivered through letters written in cursive handwriting. They are from a fictional Armenian girl, Sera, who in 1910 makes the long journey to join her father in New York. She describes to her mother back home the Statue of Liberty, being in the Baggage Hall among swarms of people speaking different languages, and the pervasive feelings of uncertainty and fear. The third element is the inclusion of numerous quotes from actual immigrants, an interpreter, a surgeon, and other officials. Overall, the story is a powerful one, but the whole is more likely to confuse than to inform young readers. The book's approach is sketchily explained in the author's note and not sufficiently introduced in the main text, which is divided into separate boxes, each of which appears in a different color and font. Krudop's gouache paintings are evocative and expressive, and archival photographs are sprinkled throughout. There may be some use for this offering in a classroom with some guided reading, but youngsters who come to it on their own will most likely feel lost."Luann Toth, School Library Journal" Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.