"Diversity can sometimes be difficult for
people to understand, especially when
immigration is new to that country or
when large numbers of people from one
particular country arrive over a short
period of time. To some people, immigrants
represent unwelcome change. Newcomers
bring with them different foods, languages,
and customs, which may seem strange or
scary. The fear of a country's personality
changing because of immigration can
sometimes result in racism ... "
Ms. Lee knows her subject matter very well. The granddaughter of Chinese immigrants, she grew up in a diverse neighborhood and interacted with many different cultures. Of course that impacts the way she writes, and the subject of this book.
"I learned, by watching my friends and their parents, that all of our families were the same at our core. We all wanted to live in a decent house, eat good food and go to good schools, and each parent wanted their children's lives to be happier and safer than their own."
Human migration is a complicated matter. How are immigration policies developed and how do they influence where migrants find a home and safety? Why do people leave their home countries? What does it mean to leave family and friends behind when moving away? The reasons are endless.
There are four chapters: The History of Human Migration, Migration Today, Racism and Hardship, and finally, Life in a New Country. They help to answer these questions and others. Interspersed throughout are personal stories of people from different home countries, with different experiences of childhood, and what they are doing today. They face many challenges: language, education, affordable housing, employment, racism, even conflict within their own families. Their courage, their willingness to adapt to their new home, their joy at meeting new people and finding success in a new place is evident in their stories.
The book features text boxes called Migration Facts and Moving On. So many impressive facts are shared:
"Every year migrants travel 1.24 billion miles (2 billion kilometers) in the process of seeking asylum."
"Each day 44,000 people are forced to flee their homes because of war, violence, famine, and persecution."
"In 1907 an organization called the Asiatic Exclusion League, which opposed immigration from Asian countries, sparked a riot in Vancouver, British Columbia's Chinatown and Japantown, causing damage to Asian-owned businesses."
"Every year about 96,000 international students come to Canada to study."
Also included is a section about immigrants and refugees who are well-known to many readers: MalalaYousafzai, K'naan, Albert Einstein, the Dalai Lama, Alek Wek, Mila Kunis, and Anish Kapoor.
Well-designed, filled with archival and color photographs and welcome illustrations, and offering a table of contents, glossary and an index, this is an excellent example of the nonfiction provided by Orca Book Publishers. While filled with much information, it is very accessible for middle graders. The first- person narration makes the reading personal and very clear. It is important for children to know the stories of immigrants in order to be more understanding of their culture, and empathetic for their many journeys to find a better life here.
Finding Home is the first book in the THINK series from Orca, which will also include Shelter and What Animals Want, upcoming this fall.
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