Grandfather's Journey by Allen Say.

A.Bibliographic Data:
Say, Allen. 1993. Grandfather's Journey. Houghton Mifflin Company: New York, New York. ISBN 0-395-57035-2.

B. Plot Summary:
Grandfather's Journey is the story of Allen Say's Grandfather's journey as a young man to America. He travels all over marveling at the wonderful sights like the pacific ocean, the amazing deserts, endless farm fields, huge cities, tall mountains, and the different men that he meets along the way. He returned to his village, marries his sweetheart and returns to San Fransisco. He eventually moves back to his village where Allen is born. Allen's grandfather shares with him his story of living in America, and of wishing to visit California once more. His grandfather's wish never comes true but once Allen is old enough he visits it for himself.

C. Critical Analysis:
Allen Says illustrations capture the magnitude of the scenic view in each of the pages which show the places that his grandfather journeyed to. The illustrations also show similarity among the individuals which is understandable since they are all related, but at the same time each person has features that makes them unique from each other and that depict their emotions. Allen also subtly adds some of the the customs of the culture, one example is the illustration of Allen's grandmother kneeling inside her home while her shoes are neatly placed outside the door. There are small details in the clothing that are consistent throughout the story like the folds in the clothing, symbols, and designs. His grandfather experienced a mixture of several different cultures and would assimilate to the surrounding culture. This is evident in the beginning of the story when Allen's grandfather is shown with the attire the conforms with his hometown, then on his journey to America he switches European clothes, then when he is back in his hometown he once changes his clothing to that of his hometown's. Allen Say understood exactly how his grandfather felt about loving both the lands because he experienced the same feelings of nostalgia towards both lands just like his grandfather had.

D. Review Excerpt:
From School Library Journal:
“In this fictionalized account, Say describes his grandfather's love for his native land and the lure of life in America, feelings the author experienced firsthand when he emigrated from Japan to the United States. In so doing, he sums up the quintessential immigrant experience, "the moment I am in one country, I am homesick for the other." Carefully composed, exquisite watercolors, resembling photographs in an album, match the quiet restraint and elegance of the text.” By Diane S. Martin.

E. Connections
Have the students go home get a picture of their Grandfather, Father or someone of high importance in their life and have them draw their portrait.

Have students do a group project on the different tourist areas of the United States that infamous, and present their choice to the class. (Ex. The Grand Canyon, Springfield Park etc.)