Who Belongs Here?
An American Story
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
120,000 copies sold!
Who Belongs Here? tells the story of a boy who, having been forced to flee his war-torn country, struggles to be accepted by his new classmates in the U.S. Some kids think he should go back where he belongs, but what if everyone whose family came from another place was forced to return to his or her homeland? Who would be left?
A new introduction traces the waves of immigration that have built America and celebrates the Muslim and Latino immigrants who are today contributing to America’s future. The book’s new cover shows a group of kids—sons and daughters of newly arrived immigrants--taking their oath of citizenship. This story is more timely now than ever.
Long an anchor text for school units on immigration and tolerance, Who Belongs Here? is now renewed in look and content. Teaching compassion for recent immigrants while sharing the important contributions made by immigrants of the past, this story is more relevant now than ever.
In this probing, plain-spoken book, based on a true story, Margy Burns Knight and Anne Sibley O'Brien, author and illustrator of the acclaimed "Talking Walls," invite young readers to explore the human implications of intolerance. Anecdotes relating the experiences of other refugees and their contributions to American culture play counterpoint to Nary's tale, all enlivened by O'Brien's full-color pastels. A compendium at the end of the book offers more detailed information about Pol, Pot, Ellis Island, and other topics in this text.
Who Belongs Here? will lead to discussions about
The effects of war on children and families
Refugees and relocation processes in the U.S.Cambodian culture
U.S. History and attitudes towards immigration
Bullying and intolerance
Conflict-resolution skills
Lexile Level 1040
Fountas and Pinnell Level W
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Following their well-received Talking Walls , Knight and O'Brien again team up for an affectionate if didactic exploration of connections among people world-wide. This time the message is filtered through the experience of Nary, a Cambodian refugee who immigrates to the U.S. with his grandmother after the death of both parents. Hostility toward immigrants and the impetus to work for change are explored. The central question, ``What if everyone . . . whose ancestors came from another country was forced to return to his or her homeland? . . . Who would be left?'' signals the book's design as a vehicle for discussion. The text itself pairs Nary's story with italicized information on immigration to the U.S. This strategy is only intermittently effective; younger readers may not be capable of making the conceptual jumps both Knight and O'Brien require, while older readers may chafe at the picture-book format. These limitations notwithstanding, the volume provides strong starting points for ongoing explorations of multicultural themes. Ages 7-13.
