My First American Friend (Little Big Book, Level 2.1)

A young Chinese girl beginning a new life in America describes how her difficult adjustment was made more endurable when she made her first American friend.

Kindergarten-Grade 3-- The first-place winner in the Raintree 1990 Young Publish-a-Book Contest. Jin, a third-grade student from Massachusetts, writes of her move from China to the United States. Despite being reunited with her parents, the move is marked by sadness and loneliness. Unable to speak or understand English, she finds first grade especially difficult until she is befriended by classmate Ali. The girls' special friendship helps Sarunna adjust to her new life. When Ali moves, Sarunna forms new friendships, but she never forgets her first American friend. Sarunna's story is told in a straightforward, convincing narrative--an impressive feat for a child with two years of English language experience. Bright cartoon watercolors illustrate the activities, but are flat and static, doing little to convey the author's feelings. Although not a necessary purchase, the book is of interest because of the young author's background, the English as a second language theme, and the message of befriending an outsider. --Heide Piehler, Shorewood Public Library, WI
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.