Dreamers by Yuyi Morales

Morales, Y. (2018). Dreamers. New York, New York: Neal Porter Books.

Artistic Response- Poetry: Three poems that describe/reflect the book

Unknown
New
Suspicious
This trek has not been easy.
But now we are here
Tired
Worn out
But
excited
All at the same time.
We’ve come for a promise
A promise of opportunity
Where we can stay together
And you can grow up in this new land
With new words
Sounds
And sights
That have been nothing but a dream
Until now.

We are trying
Adjusting isn’t always easy
We have made a few mistakes
And been confused a few times.
But finally
We enter a room of books
A safe haven
A sanctuary
A home.
We can do this
together,
Learn a new language
With the help of this room
And of each other's comfort
We can do anything
together.

We are home
We’ve made a home.
This new place isn’t so
scary
Overwhelming
Intimidating
Anymore.
We have trust
Patience
And love
Within us
Because of books
And all that they have taught us.
They have taught us
To write
To speak
To read
And
To have hope
And to always
Hold onto your dream.

These three poems reflect the Journey that Yuyi and her baby experienced. One was
for the beginning of the journey and when they first arrived at their destination, one was
for the middle where they were still getting use to their new home and one was for when
they finally felt comfortable calling the United States of America home. I felt that by
organizing their journey into poems like this would allow each poem to build off of the
last and really show what the characters were doing, feeling and experiencing during

2
each time of their life throughout this journey.

Strengths and Critique-

Dreamers by Yuyi Morales is a well executed book covering the topic of

immigration from Mexico to the United States. The story shows how immigrants can
really struggle while making the adjustment to living in the United States where
customs, the language and social norms are different than they are in Mexico. This
book utilizes vibrant illustrations that are packed with depictions of hope and
excitement, complimenting the text in such a way that the two go hand in hand to tell the
story effectively.
As a critique for this book, I think the story would have benefited by an addition to
the length and more specific examples being provided within the story. Though this
book was well done, after I had read it I was still wishing for more from the story. I
found myself wanting to know more about her struggles, what led her to the library and
just more about her life. Additional details added to describe the struggles she and her
baby had to face along with the solutions they came up with, would have given the
reader a more in depth knowledge and awareness of imigration and how tough
adjusting to a new place can be.

Part I-

Be Rich in Cultural Details-

Within Dreamers there are countless references to Mexican culture. There are
Spanish words woven throughout the text, illustrations that are inspired by mexican art
and artifacts from Mexico are shown. These references are included to give the reader
a better understanding of Yuyi and how she is feeling throughout the book. Even
though she is in a new place, she has Mexican culture within herself that she is bringing
with her to her new home and the illustrations show that through the Mexican painting
silhouettes in the sky, in the clouds and around the edges of the illustrations. Morales
did a great job at visually showing the reader her heritage along with telling it through
her writing and inclusion of Spanish words.

Honor and celebrate diversity as well as common bonds in humanity-

Dreamers celebrates the idea of welcoming the new while still remembering your
roots. This book depicts this idea through phrases like, “The sky and the land
welcomed us in words unlike those of our ancestors” (Morales, 2018). showing the
reader that they felt welcomed and eager, but in a way that was very different from back
home. Morales does a great job at showing the reader the bond between the mother

3
and son throughout the book. They are presented as a team on this adventure that they
embark on, and a mutual love is depicted through the illustrations by them holding
hands, being on the phone together and swimming together when they get in trouble.
Their bond is best depicted when they are in the library together or when they are
reading books together. This bond between them grows through books because they
are learning together despite the age gap between mother and son.

Include Members of a “Minority” Group for a Purpose Other Than Filling a

“Quota”-

The entire story was based around a Mexican woman and her infant son who just
moved to the United States from Mexico. Without these characters, the story would not
have been possible to tell from another character who is of a different race because
then they would have a different story to tell and their experience as a whole could
differ. This story shows the reader the struggles of a Spanish speaking immigrant from
Mexico and how the United States feels to them at that time. The purpose of this book
was to show the reader a side of culture that might not be commonly talked about within
society. This story is important because it highlights a topic that can often be ignored
and shows the reader what someone's real life experience was.

Part II-

Invite reflection, critical analysis, and response-

This story allows readers to reflect on prior conceptions they had about a culture
beforehand and then realize that stereotypes are not at all accurate. Dreamers shows
readers the journey that some immigrants have to endure in order to come to the United
States and it depicts their hardships along the way. This story featured relatable
characters which can make readers realize that differences aren’t something to be
afraid of, and instead it is something that should be welcomed. Because of this, readers
can then reflect on their own preconceived ideas on a scenario like this and now see the
situation from another point of view, instead of one that originated through fear in
society. The reader can gain understanding and in turn reflect on other stereotypes
they have heard of and think about how realistic and honest those labels really are for
other groups of people.

Demonstrate unique language or style-

The language used within Dreamers was a little larger than what I have seen in
other picture books, but it really added to the story and worked for this book. The story
also incorporated Spanish words into the story which added to the style of the book.
Because of this, the book's style was a cross between Mexican culture and an American
dream. The word choice throughout the book was very hopeful and inflicted a feeling of
optimism onto the reader like this line, “Where we didn’t need to speak, we only needed
to trust” (Morales, 2018). This line shows readers how great of a faith Yuyi had in books

4
and created this sense of faith, hope and trust all throughout the story. The style of this
book was unlike that of another book I have seen in the sense that Morales combined
realistic scenarios and real items with this whimsical, dreamlike theme that told the story
in a cross between real life and a hopeful dream. The style of the book really helped
the reader to understand the story better as it allowed the reader to visually see
elements of Mexican culture and visual elements of how this journey was a dream of the
main character, Yuyi.

Meet generally-accepted criteria of quality for the genre in which they are written-

Dreamers is a nonfiction book as the author, Yuyi Morales writes about her own
experience when she came to the United States from her home of Xalapa Mexico with
her infant son. Yuyi wrote about real events which made this book a nonfiction title.
Because this book is a true story about the author herself, it gives readers a better
grasp at how this actually happened to someone and countless others. Having the
author herself write about her own experience makes the story seem more real for the
reader because it is easy not think about something that actually happened if you don’t
see the persons face, but this way the reader is able to see the authors face and read in
further depth about her experience at the end of the book.

Have an appealing format and be of enduring quality-

The illustrations in Dreamers are vibrant and depict realistic moments like
protests, people watching the sunset and people walking around the city or inside of a
building. The words were woven into the illustrations smoothly, making them work
together to tell the story. The topic of this book will age well, as it is telling a story that
millions of people have experienced and that people will continue to experience in the
future. The illustrations have a very whimsical feel to them to reflect the title of
Dreamers. These illustrations will continue to ignite a feeling for new readers to come
and for those who have already read the book.

5
 Walking with Miss Millie by Tamara Bundy

Bundy, T. (2018). Walking With Miss Millie. Turtleback Books.

Artistic Response- Character Awards

Miss Millie- Wisest

Miss Millie would receive the award for “Wisest.” That woman has gone through
a lot in her life, this is evident in the stories she tells Alice on their daily walks. During
the time period this book is set, in the 1960’s. Miss Millie has gone through losing her
whole family and the struggles of being an African American woman during the early
1900’s. While she is nearing the end of her life, she bonds with the next door neighbor's
granddaughter Alice and finds a true friendship. After Alice eavesdrops on one of Miss
Millie's phone conversations, Alice’s mother forces her to apologize and ask if there is
anything she can do for her. This is when Alice begins walking Clarence, Miss Millie’s
dog. But, Clarence is stubborn and will not walk unless Miss Millie is there. This is the
beginning of their walks, and the beginning of a beautiful friendship. On their walks Miss
Millie shares stories of her family and segregation she has faced. By sharing her
experiences it shows how strong of a woman Miss Millie is. She shares messages with
her on kindness and how everyone, no matter their culture, all have different journeys,
but eventually end up in the same place, heaven (Bundy, 2018).

Alice- Most Brave

Alice is the character that changed the most during this book. At first, she was
convinced they were going to leave Rainbow soon and that her Daddy was going to
come back to them. Neither of these scenarios happened. Throughout the book we see
Alice accept this, which takes a lot of bravery. We also see her bravery when she
initially must go apologize to Miss Millie for eavesdropping on her conversation over the
phone. After this apology, it was the beginning of a wonderful friendship between Miss
Millie and Alice.
With the “forgetfulness disease” that Alice’s Grandmother is struggling with, Alice
is being brave for her Mom and brother Eddie. It is difficult for Alice to watch her mom
so upset with how sick Grandma is getting, but Alice is brave and stays strong for her
Mom during this time. There are also several occasions when people treat her dear
brother Eddie poorly for not knowing he is deaf. In these situations, Alice is the first to
step up and defend her brother, despite it being her instinct to protect her brother, it still
takes an immense amount of bravery.

Eddie- Friendliest
Eddie is very friendly throughout the entire book. He is deaf and cannot hear at
all, Alice and their Mom use sign language to talk with Eddie and must translate what

6
others are saying since not everyone in the town of Rainbow knows sign language.
Although, despite not being able to hear, Eddie is incredibly friendly, kind to everyone
and is always laughing.

Clarence- Most Stubborn

Clarence is the most stubborn character in Walking with Miss Millie. Clarence is
Miss Millie's beloved, blind, dog, who she asks Alice to walk for her. The first day Alice
attempts to walk Clarence, she tugs on the leash and he will not move. After several
attempts as soon as Miss Millie is holding the leash, he is ready to walk. The same goes
for the next few days on their walks until he gets used to Alice being around. Until then,
he remains stubborn and will only walk if he senses his owner, Miss Millie, holding his
leash.

Pam- Most Thoughtful

Pam is the most thoughtful character in this book. We see her thoughtfulness
when Alice falls off of her bike and damages it so she is not able to ride it home. Pam
sees this accident and watches bleeding Alice struggling to push her broken bike home.
She then offers to walk Alice home and let her push her bike so it is not as challenging.
This is a real act of kindness as it was in the beginning of their friendship and just days
before Alice had been short with Pam and rude to her when she was asked to hang out.
We also see Pam’s thoughtfulness when she is developing a friendship with
Eddie. Pam wants to experience what it is like to be deaf so that she can relate to her
friend. After plugging her ears and realizing that she cannot hear anything and this is
how Eddie hears all of the time, Pam decides to learn sign language so she is able to
talk to her friend. This is very thoughtful since no one is Eddie’s life besides Alice and
their mother has learned sign language, not even their grandmother who they live with.

Joanie- Most Family Oriented

Joanie is Alice and Eddie’s mother. She moves Alice, Eddie and herself out of
their home in Columbus, Ohio and to the town she grew up in, Rainbow, Georgia. The
reason for this move is to go live with her mother who is suffering from, as Alice calls it,
“the forgetful disease,” (Bundy, 2018). With taking care of her mother, we see the
emotions it causes Joanie and how challenging it is for her to watch her mother go
through this. Throughout the book, we see how much Joanie cares for her mother and
her children.

Grandma- Most Proper

Alice and Eddie’s grandmother is the most proper. She is always correcting Alice
to act like a proper Christian woman and scolding them for inappropriate behavior. As
her dementia gets worse, we see how she has changed and no longer remembers to
correct Alice.

7
Strengths and Critique
Walking with Miss Millie by Tamara Bundy has many strengths. One of her
strongest is having multiple diverse characters that are very well developed and
emotionally engaging to the reader to read about. There Miss Millie who is an elderly
African American woman, Eddie who is deaf, Joanie, a single mother, her mother who
has signs of Alzheimers and Alice, an almost eleven year old girl. Within these diverse
characters, we see true friendships form. This book does a great job at capturing the
idea that “members of the human family have more similarities than differences,”
(Young et al, 2020). Miss Millie had said that “we might all come from different
directions, she’d said. But hopefully, we all end up in the same place one day,” (Bundy,
2018). This quote really stuck out because it makes the reader think about how we all
have differences and how important it is to embrace differences and be kind to one
another regardless of the culture they come from, because deep down everyone is
incredibly similar. This story is extremely engaging and enjoyable to read and this is
because of the emotional connection the reader is able to feel with each of the
characters.
While this book has many strengths, there is also room for improvement in some
areas. One critique I have is that there is no understanding of where the author got her
information in regards to the events in which Miss Millie’s family members died. I feel it
would make the story stronger if there were sources provided to provide accuracy. I
would have also liked to have learned more about how the events where people did not
know how to communicate with Eddie made him feel. Throughout the book Eddie
seemed to be a very happy go lucky kid so it would be interesting to hear how he felt
when people were unable to communicate with him. Overall, this is a very engaging
book and would be a great read for upper elementary students through high school
students.

Part I
Portray cultural accuracy and authenticity of characters in terms of (a) physical
characteristics, (b) intellectual abilities and problem-solving capabilities, (c) leadership
and cooperative dimensions, and (d) social and economic status;
The book Walking with Miss Millie, by Tamara Bundy has a diverse set of
characters depicted throughout the story. Miss Millie is the ninety two year old, African
American neighbor who shares with Alice, her stories of growing up with segregation
and is still dealing with people in the town of Rainbow, Georgia not accepting her for
who she is. When dealing with difficulties in her life, Miss Millie shares with Alice how
she has learned to take the high road when people treat her poorly for being African
American. She also shares that with the amount of loss she has experienced that “it’s
okay to get mad. It’s okay to get sad, but after all that gettin’ mad and sad, you gotta get
smart,” (Bundy, 2018). She explains how she must determine what she can change,

8
what she cannot, and move forward. This is a lesson that really stuck with Alice.
Throughout the book, we see how Alice and Miss Millie interact on the walks. Despite
their background, age, or life experiences, we see a beautiful friendship form between
these two.
Within Alice’s immediate family we see diversity in their abilities. Alice is currently
being raised by a single mother after her father left and seldom comes around or even
calls. This leaves Alice dealing with issues of abandonment and it is hard for her to wrap
her head around the concept of never seeing her father. Alice, her brother Eddie and
their mom recently moved in with their Grandmother due to her Alzheimers or as Alice
calls it the “forgetful disease,”, so that they are there to take care of her on her bad days
(Bundy, 2018). The move has Alice upset to leave her friends and home in Columbus,
Ohio, she hopes that the move is only temporary, holding her back from making
friendships in the beginning of the book.
Alice’s younger brother is deaf, throughout the book we see his personality shine
through his joy he has for life and the laughs he shares with friends and family despite
being able to hear. We see how Alice and her mother communicate with Eddie via sign
language and how Eddie faces challenges with how hearing people treat him.

Be Rich in Cultural Details

Walking with Miss Millie provides rich cultural details about the life of African
Americans in the south. An example of this is when the author first introduces Miss
Millie, Alice explains how when her Grandmother says that Miss Millie kept to herself
because “she was a colored lady,” when the Grandmother would say “colored” she
would whisper it as if it was a secret (Bundy, 2018). We also see these cultural details
as Miss Millie tells her stories on her walks with Alice, on how her mother was a slave
and growing up how there were separate churches, places to sit on the bus, bathrooms,
drinking fountains and much more. She explains how some people still believe that
there are still places that make people feel like they don’t belong and that although,
“laws may change- but some people never do,” (Bundy, 2018). We then hear the story
of Miss Millie’s late brother James who was killed at the Atlanta Riot in 1906 while he
was standing up for the rights of those he loved. Then the story of her son, named after
her brother James who was wanting to make the world safe for his nephew when he
attended the Atlanta Riot. Baby James got very sick and Miss Millie’s only option was to
take him to the hospital where the white doctors and nurses refused to help her crying
baby. Miss Millie was a strong lady and stayed there until finally “after two hours, a
nurse let me [Miss Millie] in and had me wait in the basement for a doctor to see him,”
(Bundy, 2018). Since Miss Millie and her son had to wait for so long due to the refusal of
treatment, her son died that night. These experiences that Miss Millie has gone through,
demonstrate rich cultural details on being an African American in the south during the
early and mid 1900’s.
There are additional cultural details regarding Eddie who is deaf. Bundy shows

9
the assumptions and treatment that Eddie receives from those who are hearing.
Throughout the book, several people think that because Eddie is deaf, if they talk
louder, he will be able to hear. Which is not the case. We see this when they first arrive
at their grandmother’s house in Rainbow, and she greets him by talking extra loudly, in
which Eddie responds with a smile and nod. When Miss Millie first encounters Eddie,
she is unaware that he is deaf, when Eddie does not respond she asks, “you deaf and
dumb too?” Asking if Eddie is mute, as well as deaf, (Bundy, 2018). Miss Millie originally
assumed that since Eddie was deaf that he was not as intelligent, however after getting
to know Eddie we see a bond between the two of them grow. Another example from the
book of where we see Eddie encounter a challenge because he is deaf, is when they
meet Pam. When she first runs into Eddie and finds out he is deaf, she also talks real
loudly, thinking he will be able to hear her. She later realizes that that is not the case
when she wants to experience what it is like to be deaf, so she plugs her ears and
cannot hear what Alice is saying. Pam then begins to learn sign language, so she is
able to more easily communicate with Eddie, like Alice and her mom do.

Honor and celebrate diversity as well as common bonds in humanity

Walking with Miss Millie, honored and celebrated diversity and common bonds in
humanity. The friendship between Miss Millie and Alice celebrates the idea that no
matter how different two people can be, that they can share a much deeper bond. Alice
addresses this after Miss Millie passes away, she says “but what made us different
wasn’t one lick as important as what made us the same,” (Bundy, 2018). Something as
simple as a walk every day, taught these two so much about one another. They were
able to honor their differences and find what truly connected them. The emotional
connection these two have is evident to the reader through their many encounters in the
book.

Provide in-depth treatment of cultural issues

In Walking with Miss Millie, cultural issues such as the discrimination that Miss
Millie is faced with for being African American, as well as the assumptions people make
about Eddie due to him being deaf. The reader is able to hear the stories Miss Millie
tells about her mother being a slave, her brother being killed at a protest, and her son
dying because of refusal of treatment from the point of view of Miss Millie, an African
American woman living in the south. Hearing these stories from Miss Millie rather than a
textbook provides the reader with a perspective that makes them feel emotionally
connected to Miss Millie and feel the emotions she felt about these situations. It leads
the reader to think about Miss Millie’s culture and how they can be a part of the change
to make sure no one feels less of themselves because of the culture they belong to.
Eddie being deaf, their grandmother being sick with dementia and Joanie, their mother,
being a single mother all are able to help readers understand what it is like to be in

10
these characters' shoes and experience their day to day lives. This also gives some
readers an opportunity to connect if they relate to any of these characters.

Include characters within a cultural group or between two or more cultural groups who
interact substantively and authentically
Tamara Bundy certainly celebrates diversity as well as common bonds in
humanity in her book Walking with Miss Millie. The whole story revolves around the
atypical friendship between Miss Millie and Alice. We see that this friendship is unlike
any other, due to their race, age, family, background and life experiences. With their
differences, they are able to learn from one another and grow their bond. These two
create a bond where they are comfortable asking and talking to one another about
anything. Miss Millie tells Alice about her background and her experiences dealing with
segregation and the death of loved ones. While Alice confides in Miss Millie to talk
about her estranged father who she wants badly to return, yet he never does. She is
also able to confide in her about the issues they are facing in their home with her
Grandmother's Alzheimers and how it is hard for her to watch the emotional toll it is
taking on her mother.
We additionally see the bond between Eddie and Pam develop throughout the
book. Eddie is deaf and Pam does not care, she wants to be friends with Eddie. At first,
we see how Pam will just yell, thinking that if she talks loud enough Eddie will hear her.
However, she realizes that this is not the case. There is a scene in the book where
Eddie and Pam are hanging out and Pam proceeds to plug her ears. When Alice asks
her what she is doing, Pam says that she is trying to experience what it is like to be deaf
like Eddie. After this experience, Pam begins to learn sign language to be able to talk to
her friend.These bonds between Miss Millie and Alice as well as Eddie and Pam are
unique and special in their own way, celebrating the differences in one another and
using it as a learning opportunity to build a deeper bond and understanding.

Include members of a “minority” group for a purpose other than filling a “quota.”
There are many characters in Walking with Miss Millie, who could be considered
from a minority group. The purpose for these characters is not to fill a quota, but rather
demonstrate the idea of friendship. That it does not matter where you come from, your
background, or who you are to develop these genuine friendships and bonds and to
realize that we are all more alike than we are different.

Part II
Invite reflection, critical analysis, and response
Throughout this book, Walking with Miss Millie, allows the reader to reflect on
cultural issues. We hear about the experiences Miss Millie has gone through in her life
for being an African American woman. She lost her son because the Caucasian doctors
refused to help him until it was too late, her brother was killed at a protest where he was

11
fighting for equal rights for him and his family and we see how Miss Millie is treated by
the people in town, specifically the older McHale brother. There is a reputation that the
McHale family are mean and bullies. One day on a walk, after an encounter with the
McHale brothers, Miss Millie explains to Alice that some people are only imitating what
they've been taught. However, while some members of this family are mean, we see
that Pam and Jake are not the same. They develop friendships with Alice and Eddie
and are kind to Miss Millie, despite what their father has taught them about African
Americans. They are able to see that what really matters is kindness.
We see several conversations about religion in this book. Alice’s mother and
grandmother are always making sure Alice is being Christian-like. After Alice has a
discussion with Miss Millie about how she does not regularly attend church, she asks
her mother if you can still go to heaven without going to church. Her mother then
responds that everyone has a different path to heaven and “maybe the most important
thing is for people to just be kind,” (Bundy, 2018). Kindness is a huge theme throughout
this book and emphasizes that it does not matter where you are from, who your parents
are or who you are, that the most important thing is to be kind to everyone, always. An
example of kindness in this book is when Miss Millie realizes that Alice’s grandmother is
getting sick and forgetting to water her garden, something that she once kept so precise
and perfect. Miss Millie takes it upon herself to begin watering the garden and keeping
up with it, without the grandmother asking. In fact, Alice’s grandmother assumes the
worst and thinks Miss Millie is up to no good in her garden, when in actuality, she is
doing an act of kindness.

Demonstrate unique language or style

Walking with Miss Millie is set in Rainbow, Georgia. Miss Millie was born and
raised in the south, throughout the book, we are able to see her southern accent
through the word choice of the author. She refers to Alice as “Alice-girl” and shortening
her words, for example “making” would be “makin’” (Bundy, 2018). The style of this
book is engaging and uses vivid description and figurative language to make the reader
easily visualize the story. An example is when Alice, Eddie and their mother first arrive
at their grandmother's house, Alice describes the house as being sad. “The two upstairs
windows sticking out of the flat roof were the wide-open eyes. The front door was a
nose, and the shape of the peeling white rail of the wraparound porch, slanted on each
side of the house, made a definite frown,” (Bundy, 2018). This is an example of
something that helps the reader visualize the scene, and in a way that is engaging to
the reader.

Meet generally-accepted criteria of quality for the genre in which they are written
Walking with Miss Millie is a realistic fiction story. This book “tells a story that did
not happen but could have happened,” (Young et al, 2020). Tamara Bundy explains
how the character of Eddie was inspired by her brother who was also deaf. She also

12
explains how Miss Millie was inspired by a woman named Miss Martha who went on
daily dog walks with Bundy’s daughter. By having diverse characters, it will attract an
underrepresented audience in the world of children’s literature. “People are interested in
their own lives,” and by having characters with different cultures, it gives people more
opportunities to connect to them. For example, there are not very many books with deaf
characters, making Eddie someone that a deaf student or reader may be able to
connect to with the way people act towards him in the novel. Alice and Eddie’s
grandmother is another great character because if there is a reader who is also
experiencing or has experienced a grandparent or loved one suffer from dementia or
Alzheimer’s, it can give another opportunity for a reader to connect to her grandchildren
and their experience watching their grandmother go through it, and the emotional toll it
has taken on their mother, Joanie. Religion is another opportunity for readers to connect
to this book that may be underrepresented in other books. Finally, we have Miss Millie
and her background, who readers will be able to connect to. For those who do not
directly relate to the characters, this book provides an opportunity to expand your
knowledge and understanding of these characters' worlds and the idea of unconditional
love and friendship regardless of differences.

Have an appealing format and be of enduring quality

Walking with Miss Millie is in the form of a chapter book. Within these 227 pages
of text is a high quality story for readers to enjoy. Each character is excellently
portrayed, making the reader emotionally connect to all of them through the point of
view of almost eleven year old Alice. The cover shows two sets of legs and a dog
attached to a leash. We later find out that the people on the cover are Miss Millie, Alice,
and Miss Millie’s beloved dog Clarence. This is a great read for middle school students
to learn about diverse friendships and to get to know someone for who they are, not
what they appear or what others tell you about them.

13
 All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold and illustrated by Suzanne Kaufman

Penfold, A., & Kaufman, S. (2019). All Are Welcome. London: Bloomsbury Children's
Books.

Artistic Response- Word Collage

14
Strengths and Critiques
All Are Welcome, has many strengths, one that is most prominent is the
repeating message of “all are welcome here,” (Penfold & Kaufman, 2020). By this
repetition, it is drilling into the reader's brain that no matter what, you are welcome at
school. The author and illustrator of this book, Alexanra Penfold and Suzanne Kaufman,
do an excellent job of displaying the themes of diversity, inclusivity and kindness
throughout both the text and the illustrations. Another strength of this book is the
amount of diverse characters throughout the book. The reader is able to see people of
many different races, religions, backgrounds, abilities, and homelifes. While each
student is unique in their own way, throughout the book all of the students and their
families interact with one another and celebrate their diversity.
An area of critique for All Are Welcome is that it lacks richness in cultural details.
While it shows the images of people from each culture, we as readers have limited
details about them. This book also lacks in depth treatment of cultural issues, which
would help the reader better understand the issues behind the importance of making
sure everyone feels welcome. However, without these two ideas, this is still a very
powerful book especially for young children who can visually see the differences among
the people illustrated in the book.

Part I
Portray cultural accuracy and authenticity of characters in terms of (a) physical
characteristics, (b) intellectual abilities and problem-solving capabilities, (c) leadership

15
and cooperative dimensions, and (d) social and economic status
In All Are Welcome, the main idea of the story is that no matter what school is a
safe place for all students. Through Suzanne Kaufman’s illustrations we are able to see
the characteristics of the diverse characters portrayed in this book. There are students
and parents of all different races and backgrounds. There are sets of parents with two
moms or two dads, students with wheelchairs and students with all different interests.
We see the friendships and bonds between the students as they play with each other on
the playground and wave goodbye as the school day ends.

Honor and celebrate diversity as well as common bonds in humanity

We definitely see the celebration in diversity through the illustrations and the
repeated phrase “all are welcome here,” (Penfold & Kaufman, 2018). This book shows
the diversity of these students and their families and emphasizes that no matter where
you come from, what your background, race, or religion is, that you are welcome and
celebrated in this school. Through all the differences these students and families may
have, they have a common unity through school and learning.

Include characters within a cultural group or between two or more cultural groups who
interact substantively and authentically
This book has many different cultural groups represented. We see students and
their families of different races and religions as well as families with interrcial parents
and families with two moms or two dads and students in wheelchairs or who are blind.
An illustration that really stands out is one where there are eighteen students standing
in a circle around a map painted on the asphalt of their playground (Penfold & Kaufman,
2018). Again, there are students of all different backgrounds and abilities. These
students are holding hands standing around this map and the image is accompanied by
the words “were part of a community. Our strength is our diversity. A shelter from
adversity. All are welcome here,” (Penfold & Kaufman, 2018). This is a very powerful
example of the unity within this school and the importance of celebrating each other to
make each and every student feel welcome because they do belong at school. .

Include members of a “minority” group for a purpose other than filling a “quota.”
The author included members of minority groups in All Are Welcome for a
purpose rather than filling a quota. Penfold and Kaufman are showing that school is a
safe place for all students and their families. That students regardless of their culture,
have the opportunity to learn, and be loved for who they are at school. There are no
stereotypes in this book, simply students coming to school and celebrating who they
are.

Part II
Invite reflection, critical analysis, and response

16
 All Are Welcome invites students to reflect on their school experience. While this
book is geared towards younger children, it shows them a diverse set of people
represented in the classrooms and challenges the reader to look at the students in their
own classroom. To acknowledge and celebrate their differences while they are sharing
the common thread of learning. Students will notice the diversity among their own
classroom, and despite their differences, these students will engage in activities and
learning side by side.

Demonstrate unique language or style

All Are Welcome includes lyrical style writing that works with the illustrations to
create a story with a beautiful message of kindness, inclusivity and diversity. Penfold
uses rhyming in her text that is engaging and fun to read, an example is on a page
which shows students eating lunch in the cafeteria, with a variety of food and interaction
going on. This page reads, “time for lunch- what a spread! A dozen different kinds of
bread. Pass it around till everyone’s fed,” (Penfold & Kaufman, 2018). The story is told
in a third person perspective and uses the repeated phrase “all are welcome here” to
get the message across to the reader that no matter who you are, you are welcome at
school.

Meet generally-accepted criteria of quality for the genre in which they are written
This book is a realistic fiction children's picture book, it is based on Suzanne
Kaufman’s daughter's school, which is located close by in Seattle, Washington, where
diversity is celebrated every day. This story was also inspired by the school community
in Brooklyn, New York where Alexandra Penfold is from (Penfold & Kaufman, 2018).
Through the illustrations in this book, the reader is able to see students that may look
like them, or see them engaging in activities they like to participate in. The important
part is giving each reader someone in the book to connect to “that provides an
expanded understanding of ‘my world’” (Young et al, 2020).

Have an appealing format and be of enduring quality

All Are Welcome, is in the format of a children’s picture book. The illustrations in
this book are very bright and engaging and work wonderfully alongside the text.
Kaufman used acrylic paint, ink, crayon and online collage to create them. This book is
short, yet very powerful through its concise wording and colorful illustrations. While this
book is geared towards children, people of all ages will no doubt love this book and take
in the message.

17
 Chosen Book for NBGS List

Our group has chosen Walking with Miss Millie Tamara Bundy to be the book
that we are advocating to go on the Notable Books for Global Society list. Walking with
Miss Millie not only meets the requirements to be nominated, but it exceeds them in
every category, as discussed previously. This book is a great read and celebrates
diversity through its authentic friendships and acts of kindness. The style of this book
had me hooked and I could not put it down.
Walking with Miss Millie is the story of a ten year old girl, Alice who moves to
Rainbow, Georgia with her mom and brother to live with their grandmother who is sick
with “forgetful disease” as Alice calls it. Alice’s mother is a single mother during the
1960’s and is doing everything she can to take care of her mother and her two children,
one of whom is deaf. After needing to apologize to the neighbor for eavesdropping,
Alice quickly develops a friendship with Miss Millie, the ninety two year old, African
American woman who lives next door. To make up for her eavesdropping, Alice must
walk Miss Millie’s dog Clarence. However, Clarence will not walk without Miss Millie, so
she goes along. This is where their friendship develops.
On their daily walks, Alice learns a lot about Miss Millie and what she has gone
through being an African American woman in the early 1900’s. Miss Millie shares her
life stories with Alice and teaches her valuable lessons on kindness. Alice also finds
herself confiding in Miss Millie with challenges she is facing, regarding her
grandmother's sickness, her desire to return to Columbus and the realization that her
father is not going to return. The friendship these two share is truly one of a kind. This
friendship was inspired by Miss Martha who went on daily dog walks with Tamara

18
Bundy’s daughter. The character of Eddie being deaf is inspired by Bundy’s brother who
was also deaf.
This book is a must have in upper elementary grades and all the way through
high school and beyond. Walking with Miss Millie provides many characters that exhibit
diversity. Miss Millie is an elderly, African American woman, while Alice and her family
are caucasian. Alice’s brother is deaf, and their grandmother is sick with dementia.
Through this book, it is also able to connect to, or teach readers about having a single
parent, or having a parent that has left the family. This book also incorporates religion
and what it means to Alice’s family versus Miss Millie. Walking with Miss Millie is able to
connect to readers that come from a variety of backgrounds and show how they unite in
this book. With the variety of diverse characters in this story, it will expand the audience
for who will connect to this book and it will provide a learning opportunity for those who
don’t.

Chosen Honor Books

Our group has chosen to support the inclusion of Lucky Broken Girl by Ruth
Behar and Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga as honor books for the Notable
Books for a Global Society. Both of these books have met the requirement for the
Notable Books for a Global Society criteria and are resourceful in a classroom.
Lucky Broken Girl by Ruth Behar is a story about a Cuban immigrant living in
New York in 1966. Ruthie, the main character, is a very intelligent 11-year-old girl who
inspires to be an artist and writer when she’s older. The inspiration for her future careers
came when she was bedridden for almost a year as a result of a deadly car crash. She
broke her femur and had a cast that went all the way up to her chest. This story takes
readers through Ruthie’s difficulties in keeping up with school work, supporting her
mother who speaks little english, and the friendships she creates while being bedridden.
This book is a great book to include in a classroom. This multicultural text allows
readers to connect with diverse groups of people and learn about the many struggles
they face. For example, Ruthie must convince her teacher that she is smart despite her
language barrier and her father must work three jobs to keep up with the bills. Behar
also incorporates characters of other ethnicities, such as a young Belgian girl and an
Indian boy that become close friends with Ruthie. Adding more diversity to books allows
diverse children to see a reflection of themselves in literature, which will create “self-
affirmation” (Young et al, 2020). Additionally, this book incorporates caucasian
characters that interact daily with Ruthie. In the past, many people have worried that
multicultural books only further “perpetuate a notion of ‘them’ (those perceived as
having culture) and ‘us’ (those perceived to be without culture).” (Glazier & Seo, 2005).
However, Lucky Broken Girl diminishes those attitudes by portraying people of different
races interacting together as one. All in all, teachers can use this book in a variety of

19
ways to learn more about diverse cultures.
Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga is a story about Jude, a seventh grade
girl from Syrian who has just come to the United States with her mother to stay with her
uncle and his American family while her mom has her baby sister and until her baba
(dad) can come and join the family. While in the United states, Jude discovers what it
means to be brave, how to be strong and what it means to truly be herself in a new
place that seems to want her to do the opposite. This story is set in a modern day Ohio
suburb and is told from Judes point of view while written in verse.
This would be an amazing text to include in a middle grade classroom as it has
many admirable qualities to draw readers in and open up the eyes of readers to another
culture. When in the United States, Jude misses her home in Syria and feels like an
outsider as she begins school in the United States. This story would be relatable for a
large group of readers due to how complex of a character Jude is. Students who value
family, are from the middle east or Syria, who are learning English as a second
language, and even students who find it difficult to fit in could all find elements in this
book that apply to them. Because of this versatility we thought Other Words for Home
should receive an honor out of all the books we read. Other Words for Home contained
Arabic words all throughout the book which can help diverse readers stay more
engaged with the book as there are words that could already be familiar to them
depending on the language that they speak (Young et al, 2020). The verse format of
the book makes it more engaging for readers as it is less intimidating. Through the
verse format, Judes true thoughts really shine through the writing and are displayed in a
poetic way, further exposing students to a new type of writing that they might not be
familiar with.
Each of these books exemplified great books that the multicultural genre has to
offer to the world. All of the books we read for this assignment were outstanding and
taught us all something new, but we felt that Other Words for Home and Lucky Broken
Girl stood out from the rest. We all learned something after reading and discussing
these books with one another and are thankful we had the opportunity to read such
great books for this assignment.

20
 Conclusion

Our biggest realization from this assignment is that we all still have much to learn
about our world. We developed an awareness of the value in multicultural literature and
recognized the understated power in these stories. These books not only broaden our
own worldview, but allow room for conversation about culture and diversity. These
topics are often silenced as people become uncomfortable exploring a culture they
might not know much about. We collectively realized that before this assignment we had
always put culture in a metaphorical ‘box’. There was a lack of understanding that
diverse cultures coexist together bringing together a community, and a beauty in giving
these silenced topics opportunity to be heard. This project reemphasized the urgency in
preservice teachers becoming knowledgeable of the diverse world that we live in. Not
only is this an important part of being a knowledgeable citizen but that we are also able
to communicate this understanding with our future students, allowing them to be
comfortable in the classroom because they feel as though their own culture is
understood or is willing to be learned about.
Now that we have been able to read eight books (a tiny sliver, in the grand
scheme of things) regarding a range of different cultures, it is important that we continue
to become more knowledgeable by looking deeper into reading books with differing
points of view. This allows us to deeper understand these cultures we may not have
known much about before. By better understanding various cultures through the use of
books, we are able to conclude and understand that each person's relationship to their
culture will vary and that people within the same culture can still be very different from
one another.

21
 This assignment sets groundwork for knowledge that will be of use for the rest of
our lives. As future teachers our classrooms are going to be full of a diverse range of
students with different cultures that they bring in the classroom. By being more
knowledgeable about their culture we are better able to meet the needs of that student.
However this is not only applicable in the classroom, everyday as humans we encounter
individuals who come from a diverse background- being knowledgeable of a diverse
range of cultures we can better understand people in general.
All in all, our group did a wonderful job of not procrastinating this assignment. We
all worked well at collaborating ideas and being able to get our work finished in a timely
manner. We worked together well and feel that we completed this assignment at a
quality we all are proud of. One thing that I personally would change about this
assignment for next time would be giving myself more opportunity for brain breaks so
that I could better focus on the quality of my writing rather than having to spend time
revising it over and over.

References

Acevedo, E. (2019). With the Fire on High. Richmond, Vic.: Hardie Grant Egmont.

Behar, R. (2017). Lucky Broken Girl. Turtleback Books: Penguin Random House LLC.

Bundy, T. (2018). Walking With Miss Millie. Turtleback Books.

Glazier, J. & Seo J.A. (2005). Multicultural literature and discussion as mirror and
window? Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 48(8), 686-700.

Landt, S. M. (2006). Multicultural Literature and Young Adolescents: A Kaleidoscope of

Opportunity. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 49(8), 690-697.
doi:10.1598/jaal.49.8.5

Morales, Y. (2018). Dreamers. New York, New York: Neal Porter Books.

Peña, M. D., & Long, L. (2018). Love. Solon, OH: Findaway World, LLC.

Penfold, A., & Kaufman, S. (2019). All Are Welcome. London: Bloomsbury Children's
Books.

Warga, J. (2020). Other Words for Home. Waterville, ME: Thorndike Press, a part of
Gale, a Cengage Company.

Woodson, J., & López, R. (2019). The Day You Begin. Toronto: CNIB.

22
Young, T. A., Bryan, G., Jacobs, J. S., & Tunnell, M. O., (2020). Children’s literature,
briefly. 7th Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Merrill Prentice Hall.

COLLABORATION FORM

Working together on an assignment or project means sharing the responsibilities for completing that assignment.
While each member will naturally shoulder different responsibilities while working on the project, collaboration
does not mean merely tacking someone else’s name to the project so that they can earn credit for completing it.
Listed below are the members of our collaborative group along with our signatures. We have also specified the
aspects of the project for which each one of us was responsible and rated ourselves on our collaborative work.

Names of Group Responsibilities Self-Assessment

Members & Signature

Read Walking with Miss Millie and All Are 5/5

Welcome. Analyzed the criteria for both books,
wrote my definition of multicultural literature. Anna Wilson
Anna Wilson I chose Walking With Miss Millie as our chosen
book and wrote the explanation.

Read With the Fire on High and The Day You 5/5
Begin. Wrote the purpose of this assignment,
Sydney Brager steps to completing this assignment and the Sydney Brager
conclusion. I also defined my definition of
multicultural literature.

23
 Read Love and Lucky Broken Girl 5/5
Chose one book as an honor book, wrote the
Sydney Collins criteria for the two books I read, wrote my Sydney Collins
definition of multicultural literature, helped
write the steps it took to complete this
assignment.

Read Other Words for Home and Dreamers 5/5

Analyzed the criteria for each book, described
my definition of multicultural literature and Eva Vincent
Eva Vincent wrote the purpose of this assignment. Helped
discuss which books should be our honor books
and winner and wrote the explanation for Other
Words for Home.

Our signatures above attest that we all contributed equally in this project.

24