Say, Allen. Grandfather's journey.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1993.
Plot Summary: Grandfather’s
Journey, written and illustrated by Allen Say, shares the life of his
grandfather as he moves from Japan to the United States and back again several
times. As the grandfather grows older, he passes down his curiosity and will to
travel to his children and grandchildren, who all learn to appreciate life and
culture in new and familiar places.
Critical Analysis: What a beautiful story depicting the
travels of several Japanese-American gentlemen. Their love of both the United
States and Japan is portrayed in this story, which makes this book a great
story to share with or about Japanese-Americans or others that share interests
in more than one culture. This book, told from the perspective of the
grandchild, shares the accounts of three generations of travelers, all who had
or have a longing to travel and experience new places. The book has few words,
but the well-done illustrations speak volumes. The full-page (two-page spread)
illustrations often contrast each other, and share the differences between the
two cultures that words cannot depict. The characters are well defined, and not
stereotypical, most likely due to the fact that Allen Say grew up in Japan and
moved to the United States at the age of sixteen. The book is rich in cultural
details, depicting American and Japanese culture. While some cultural markers
are included in the text, many can be found in the book’s illustrations.
Cultural markers include depictions of war times, clothing, landscapes, and
ways of transportation.
Reviews:
Bookhive: Do
you ever wonder what it would be like to visit another country on a whim and
explore it from coast to coast? This is just what the author's grandfather did. Allen Say chronicles
the life of his grandfather and
his love affair with the United States and Japan. Through beautiful and
intimate portraits, the reader will witness this extraordinary man as he
explores the States by train, riverboat, and believe it or not, by foot. He
experiences the deserts, the huge cities with factories and tall buildings, but
loves California best. However, as the grandfather
watches his own daughter grow, he realizes how much he misses his childhood
friends and the landscapes of Japan. Experience the celebration of two cultures
as Allen Say lovingly recounts the life of his grandfather. This 1994 Caldecott Medal Winner is a good read to
share with armchair travelers from elementary school kids on up.
Kirkus: The
funny thing is, the moment I am in one country, I am homesick for the
other," observes Say near the end of this poignant account of three
generations of his family's moves between Japan and the US. Say's grandfather came here as a young man,
married, and lived in San Francisco until his daughter was "nearly
grown" before returning to Japan; his treasured plan to visit the US once
again was delayed, forever as it turned out, by WW II. Say's American-born
mother married in Japan (cf. Tree of Cranes, 1991), while he, born in Yokohama,
came here at 16. In lucid, graceful language, he chronicles these passages,
reflecting his love of both countries--plus the expatriate's ever-present
longing for home--in both simple text and exquisitely composed watercolors:
scenes of his grandfather
discovering his new country and returning with new appreciation to the old, and
pensive portraits recalling family photos, including two evoking the war and
its aftermath. Lovely, quiet--with a tenderness and warmth new to this fine
illustrator's work.
Children’s
Literature: The cover of this book shines with gold, which is a good
representation for the richness within. The author tells how his Japanese grandfather travels to America and
falls in love with its diversity. Later, he journeys to America, and, like his grandfather, learns that "the moment I am in one country, I
am homesick for the other." There are few words in the book, but it speaks
paragraphs about all kinds of longing.
Awards:
ABC Children's
Booksellers Choices Award, 1994 Winner Picture Books United States
Bay Area Book
Reviewers Association Award, 1994 Winner Children's Literature United States
Boston Globe-Horn Book
Award for Excellence in Children's Literature, 1994 Winner Illustration United States
California Book
Awards, 1993 Winner
Ages Up to 10 United States
National Association
of Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA), 1993 Winner United States
New York Times Best
Illustrated Children's Books of the Year, 1993 Winner United States
Randolph Caldecott
Medal, 1994 Winner
United States
Connections: This
book will be well received in classrooms of varying ages. Use this title in an
art class and have students draw two self-portraits: one in their hometown, and
another in a place they long to visit.
Check out the
following titles also about Japanese Americans....
Bunting, Eve, and Chris K. Soentpiet. So
far from the sea. New York: Clarion Books, 1998.
Kadohata, Cynthia. Kira-kira.
New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2004.
Uchida, Yoshiko, and Joanna Yardley. The
bracelet. New York: Philomel, 1993.
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