SJPL Picks: Immigration Stories in Picture BooksLike this list

66 items

• New

  Mata, Nina, 1981-

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  A Filipina child contemplates what it means to be new on the first day of school where everything, including the city, the school, the people, the glares and the stares are new, but new can also mean new beginnings.

• Little Bird Laila

  Yang, Kelly,

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  Chinese American Laila embraces the joys and struggles of translating for her immigrant parents and teaching a new language.

• Yasi and Mina's Pomegranate Tree

  Yahyazadeh, Nikoo,

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  In Tehran during the war with Iraq, best friends Yasi and Mina must come to terms with parting when Yasi's family emigrates to America.

• Elsa's Chessboard

  Andrus, Jenny Gewing, 1958-

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  In 1900s Vienna, Elsa convinces her brothers to teach her chess, and when the family emigrates to America, she knows chess will bring people together, in a tale of resilience, human connection and the potential of women in male-dominated fields.

• Every Peach Is a Story

  Masumoto, David Mas,

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  Little Midori discovers that every peach on her Japanese American family's farm is a sweet reminder of those who've come before as Jiichan, her grandfather, teaches her about her heritage and her family's connection to the land.

• Pilgrim Codex

  Mansour Manzur, Vivian,

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  The Vargas Ramirez family journeys from the Land of the Frogs to The Place Where Feet Cry to the River Where the Waters Tangle, in a story about an immigrant family's journey north as seen through a child's eyes.

• Home Is a Wish

  Kuo, Julia,

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  A child moves far away from everything comforting and familiar, but slowly discovers home is where the heart is.

• Paloma Flies Away

  Guarda, María J.,

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  Will Paloma and her parents someday find their way back to home and family? A Chilean artist tells an emotionally resonant, beautifully illustrated immigration story through a child’s eyes.

• Not Far From Here

  Armendia-Sánchez, Nydia,

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  Mamá tells her children a story that began when their papá was a niño, not far from here. Their abuelitas told stories of their antepasados, and their abuelo, a blacksmith, taught their papá how to make art from earth and fire. When abuelo died,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Birthday Soup

  Chang, Grace Seo,

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  Celebrating a time-honored Korean tradition, this heartwarming story follows Maia as she gets to help prepare Birthday Soup (miyeok guk) and decides to share it with her friends at her birthday party, blending two cultures she's part of to create a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Star Shines Through

  Desnitskaya, Anna,

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  Displaced in the aftermath of war, a young girl and her mother leave their star-shaped window lamp behind and move to another country where everything is different until they find a way to make this new place feel a little more like home.

• Rostam's Picture-day Pusteen

  Tahmaseb, Ryan Bani,

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  When it's picture day at his new school, Rostam doesn't want to wear his pusteen, even though his Baba wore it when he was little, because he's worried his classmates will think it's weird, but learns sometimes being brave means sharing your whole…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Everyone Loves Career Day but Zia

  Liao, Jenny,

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  Chinese American Zia helps her mom tell her classmates about her job as a seamstress through translation.

• Saudade

  Our Longing for Brazil

  Crespo, Ana, 1976-

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  If your heart has ever ached remembering a place or a person, a smell or a taste, then you’ve felt saudade. Saudade is a Portuguese and Galician word with no perfect translation to English; it’s a strong, melancholy longing for something you once…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• This Is Not a Cholent

  Sassoon, Sarah, 1981-

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  Amira is nervous about how different her and her Nona's Iraqi cholent is from the other entries in the "Best Cholent Competition Down Under," but gains confidence once the judges taste it.

• Box of Dreams

  Kazmi, Faith,

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  A mother and child connect with loved ones by post and shared memory in Kazmi’s cheerfully told debut. When a child sporting a red dress wonders about the box Mama is packing, Mama says, “It’s a balikbayan box. It means return to home, and it’s how…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Popo & Meimei Can Help

  Wu, Cathy,

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  Popo—who doesn’t speak any English—is always there for Meimei whenever she needs an extra hand. They speak Mandarin Chinese at home, and Meimei picks up new words every day. Today, Meimei feels like she can’t do anything without Popo. But, in the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Five Stories

  Weinstein, Ellen, 1959-

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  Celebrating many diverse cultures that make up our nation, these are the stories of five children, from five different cultures and in five different decades, from the 1910s to the 1980s, who all grew up in the same building on the Lower East Side…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Mochi Makers

  Fujimoto-Johnson, Sharon,

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  Emi and Obaachan are making mochi. It’s a recipe that’s been passed down for generations. Obaachan brought it with her when she first came to America from Japan and now, Emi is about to become her family’s newest mochi maker! They mix and pound and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Words We Share

  Wong, Jack, 1985-

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  Angie is used to helping her dad. Ever since they moved to Canada, he relies on her to translate for him from English to Chinese. Angie is happy to help: when they go to restaurants, at the grocery store, and, one day, when her dad needs help…Read moreRead more of this annotation