Grandfather's Journey

Author: Allen Say
Genre: Fiction, Picture Book
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company
Copyright Date: 1993
Pages of Book: 32
Reading Level: Ages 4-8

Summary
"Grandfather's Journey" begins with the narrator telling of his grandfather who left his home--Japan--to travel the world. He went to Europe, and eventually came to North America. His grandfather explored deserts, fields, cities, and mountains. Eventually his grandfather stayed in California, his favorite place. He went back to Japan to marry, and then brought his childhood sweetheart back to North America. They had a daughter, and eventually took her and his wife back to Japan.His daughter fell in love and was married, and then he--the narrator--was born. He tells about experiences with his grandpa--hearing stories of California, the war, etc.--and when he was older, he himself went to see California. The story ends with him saying, "The funny thing is, the moment I am in one country, I am homesick for the other."

The pictures in this book are beautiful. They all consist of very soft colors, light blues and grays. The lines are not hard or definite, but again very soft. Despite this fact, the pictures are all very detailed, and your eyes are drawn to them. The illustrations are also very big, taking up nearly the whole page, absolutely perfect for children.

Reaction
I loved this book. I thought it was a sweet story about heritage and a longing for home. I thought it was interesting yet so true how oftentimes when we move to another place, we long for the other.

Recommendations
I would recommend this book to anyone. The story is very sweet and I think a lot of people can relate to it.
Problems/Conflicts
I didn't find any problems with this book. I suppose some people may not like the talk of the war and how there was nothing left of the city or home of his grandparents, but other than that there were no conflicts with the story.