Picture Book #23--Grandfather's Journey

Title:  Grandfather's Journey

Author:  Allen Say

Illustrator:  Allen Say

Grade Level Equivalent:  4.2

Lexile Measure:  AD650L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Biography/Literature for a Diverse Society

Theme:  Live life to the fullest.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Grandfather, Allen Say

Awards:  Caldecott Medal (Won, 1994)
Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards (Won, 1994)
California Book Awards (Nominated, 1995)
Date of Publication:  1993
Publisher:  Houghton Mifflin

ISBN:  0395570352

Grandfather’s Journey tells the story of author Allen Say’s grandfather, who traveled from his homeland of Japan to see America.  It tells about his first time on a steamship and his first time wearing European clothes.  He was so enamored with the mountains and coastline of California that he made it his new home.  But after a while he became homesick for his native Japan.  He moved back there and married his childhood sweetheart.  It wasn’t long before the two of them moved back to California where they had a daughter.  But yet again, he grew homesick and wanted to go back to Japan.  When his daughter was grown, they all moved back home.  There his daughter found a husband, and had a son, Allen Say.  Say’s grandfather often talked about California and longed to return.  But just as he planned a trip to see his beloved state again, war broke out and the trip never happened.  Allen Say’s grandfather never made it back to California again before his death.  Say decided to make the trip himself, eventually settling in California.  However, he inherited his grandfather’s love of Japan and often makes the trip out to his native land, traveling back and forth, just as his grandfather did.

This book would be a wonderful addition to any classroom.  It has illustrations that are very rich and colorful and show the nature that you would find in the Japanese village where Say’s grandfather lived.  It would be a great book to show children about the culture of that region.  It would also be great to spark a discussion with the students about where their grandparents or great-grandparents came from and how they would feel if they had a home in one country but also felt as if another country was home, as well. Which would they feel more comfortable in and why?