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The Matchbox Diary by Paul Fleischman (Abridged, Audiobook, Box set) Paperback
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Picture Books (2013)"Pick whatever you like most. Then I’ll tell you its story."
When a little girl visits her great-grandfather at his curio-filled home, she chooses an unusual object to learn about: an old cigar box. What she finds inside surprises her: a collection of matchboxes making up her great-grandfather’s diary, harboring objects she can hold in her hand, each one evoking a memory. Together they tell of his journey from Italy to a new country, before he could read and write — the olive pit his mother gave him to suck on when there wasn’t enough food; a bottle cap he saw on his way to the boat; a ticket still retaining the thrill of his first baseball game.
When a little girl visits her great-grandfather at his curio-filled home, she chooses an unusual object to learn about: an old cigar box. What she finds inside surprises her: a collection of matchboxes making up her great-grandfather’s diary, harboring objects she can hold in her hand, each one evoking a memory. Together they tell of his journey from Italy to a new country, before he could read and write — the olive pit his mother gave him to suck on when there wasn’t enough food; a bottle cap he saw on his way to the boat; a ticket still retaining the thrill of his first baseball game.
Paperback
First published March 12, 2013
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About the author
Paul Fleischman
66 books196 followers Paul Fleischman grew up in Santa Monica, California. The son of well-known children's novelist Sid Fleischman, Paul was in the unique position of having his famous father's books read out loud to him by the author as they were being written. This experience continued throughout his childhood.
Paul followed in his father's footsteps as an author of books for young readers, and in 1982 he released the book "Graven Images", which was awarded a Newbery Honor citation.
In 1988, Paul Fleischman came out with "Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices", an unusually unique collection of poetry from the perspective of insects. This book was awarded the 1989 John Newbery Medal. Factoring in Sid Fleischman's win of the John Newbery Medal in 1987 for his book "The Whipping Boy", Paul and Sid Fleischman became to this day the only father and son authors to both win the John Newbery Medal.
Paul followed in his father's footsteps as an author of books for young readers, and in 1982 he released the book "Graven Images", which was awarded a Newbery Honor citation.
In 1988, Paul Fleischman came out with "Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices", an unusually unique collection of poetry from the perspective of insects. This book was awarded the 1989 John Newbery Medal. Factoring in Sid Fleischman's win of the John Newbery Medal in 1987 for his book "The Whipping Boy", Paul and Sid Fleischman became to this day the only father and son authors to both win the John Newbery Medal.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 718 reviews
August 10, 2021
داستان پدربزرگی که خاطراتش را در قوطیهای کبریت نگه داشته، حتی در زمانی که خواندن و نوشتن نمیدانسته و با اشیا و نقاشی ها و عکس ها آن هارا نگهداری کرده... به نظرم بهترین ایده برای آموزش نوشتن و جمعآوری خاطرات به کودکان بود و روشی خلاق!
May 19, 2020
پرتقال واقعا جزو انتشاراتیه که وقت صرف تکتک جزئیات کتاب میکنه. برخلاف تصویرسازیهای ضعیف اکثر کتابهای کودکان، غالب کتابهایی که پرتقال چاپ کرده از تصویرسازیهای بینظیری برخورده، چه تآلیفی و چه ترجمه. نمونه بارزش هم همین کتاب که تصویرسازیها در حد اعلاست. شاید لازم نباشد متن را بخوانی چون تصویرهای تو را در خود غرق میکند و خود بهتنهایی برایت قصه را تعریف میکند.
April 8, 2013
My new favorite book to recommend to teachers, especially in this season of test prep. As we prepare for our 3rd-5th grade state standardized testing, there is a focus on reading short passages to make inferences as well as writing responses to short passages. This title wins on all counts--it is a beautifully illustrated telling of a wonderful story in it's own right. The fact that it is also suitable for so many curriculum-based uses is lagniappe. (As Fleischman is also the author of Weslandia, another well-used book in many curricula, I guess it should not be a big surprise.)
A perfect fit for immigration, this book also lends itself to the "small moment" writing of the writers' workshop model of teaching. I have discussed with teachers using it to introduce a writing prompt of what would you put into a matchbox that would represent a small moment in your life, or asking students to write about what a historical character might put into their box and why. So many possibilities!
Definitely a keeper, maybe even one to order a second copy of. Props to Junior Library Guild for choosing it to send my way, too.
A perfect fit for immigration, this book also lends itself to the "small moment" writing of the writers' workshop model of teaching. I have discussed with teachers using it to introduce a writing prompt of what would you put into a matchbox that would represent a small moment in your life, or asking students to write about what a historical character might put into their box and why. So many possibilities!
Definitely a keeper, maybe even one to order a second copy of. Props to Junior Library Guild for choosing it to send my way, too.
August 27, 2017
Historical fiction for those youngsters who prefer picture-books. The pictures add a lot to the story, and I like them. Too bad, though, that they are old-fashioned and sepia, which makes history seem more remote than relevant.
May 23, 2016
I loved the illustraions for this book. It is a lovely story of a man telling about his journey to America to his great-granddaughter, and collecting memories in matchboxes. A lovely tale of family and history.
January 24, 2019
I loved this story because the first half is so very very similar to my own family's story. I love the idea of a matchbox diary and using the objects to tell a life story. Those objects lose meaning without the story so I hope great-granddaughter remembers the stories to pass down and writes them down.
I loved how the boy worked hard and savored words when he finally learned to read. I also liked how he didn't gloss over how hard it was to become American and the prejudices he faced. His chosen occupation is lovely and perfect for the boy who dreamed of keeping a diary.
The illustrations are gorgeous and lifelike! I felt like I was right there with my family in impoverished southern Italy in the 1910s and on that ship with them. The flashback sequences are done in a sepia tone to mimic old photos.
This is a must-read to children/grand/great of immigrants, particularly great-grandchildren of Italian immigrants of that generation. My nieces just about remember my Nonnie and she lives on through her stories and recipes.
I loved how the boy worked hard and savored words when he finally learned to read. I also liked how he didn't gloss over how hard it was to become American and the prejudices he faced. His chosen occupation is lovely and perfect for the boy who dreamed of keeping a diary.
The illustrations are gorgeous and lifelike! I felt like I was right there with my family in impoverished southern Italy in the 1910s and on that ship with them. The flashback sequences are done in a sepia tone to mimic old photos.
This is a must-read to children/grand/great of immigrants, particularly great-grandchildren of Italian immigrants of that generation. My nieces just about remember my Nonnie and she lives on through her stories and recipes.
May 14, 2015
I am on this path to read all the 2013 Goodreads nominated Illustrated books. Got up early this morning and read three or four we got from the library. But this is one of three or four I have read that I will own, for sure. Gorgeously, delicately, romantically illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline, and much space is given to these illustrations. It is a story I was imagining might be less for kids than the librarians that are choosing this book, and parents who just love it for its love of history and family memory, and grandparents who want to pass memories down.
My friend Roxanne Pilat has written a dissertation called Piano, Piano about her own nineties-year old father's memories that she calls "paramemoir" (not her term), stories told in snatches and added to and filled in and told alongside pictures and railway tickets and poems and recipes and reflections about memory and narrative. Memory and family history as pastiche, as scraps, and the compilation of them as a kind of diorama or collage. This story, Matchbox Diary, is less ambitious, maybe, but no less impressive, the story of a grandfather who tells the story of his life through small objects he kept in his youth in matchboxes. Each object connects to a story for him. He wants to encourage his granddaughter to keep a diary and value memory and story and the past in the way Pilat also cares about. I loved this book, in part because the stories are like Pilat's, Italian-American. Gorgeous book. About history and memory and family and storytelling.
My friend Roxanne Pilat has written a dissertation called Piano, Piano about her own nineties-year old father's memories that she calls "paramemoir" (not her term), stories told in snatches and added to and filled in and told alongside pictures and railway tickets and poems and recipes and reflections about memory and narrative. Memory and family history as pastiche, as scraps, and the compilation of them as a kind of diorama or collage. This story, Matchbox Diary, is less ambitious, maybe, but no less impressive, the story of a grandfather who tells the story of his life through small objects he kept in his youth in matchboxes. Each object connects to a story for him. He wants to encourage his granddaughter to keep a diary and value memory and story and the past in the way Pilat also cares about. I loved this book, in part because the stories are like Pilat's, Italian-American. Gorgeous book. About history and memory and family and storytelling.
November 15, 2013
I usually prefer simple line drawings to realistic paintings, and this book had more dialogue than most of my favorites.
However, I really enjoyed the idea that the great-grandfather created a "diary" using matchboxes with an important object to commemorate certain life events. And the illustrations are beautiful.
We follow Great Grandfather from Italy when he is quite young through his immigration and many travels and travails in the U.S.
Great Grandfather is an inspiration to document our own stories and to learn the stories of others.
However, I really enjoyed the idea that the great-grandfather created a "diary" using matchboxes with an important object to commemorate certain life events. And the illustrations are beautiful.
We follow Great Grandfather from Italy when he is quite young through his immigration and many travels and travails in the U.S.
Great Grandfather is an inspiration to document our own stories and to learn the stories of others.
March 13, 2013
So pretty, so affecting! So happy to unreservedly praise this marvelous book by Paul Fleischman and Bagram Ibatoulline. Makes me think of books by Allan Say, but just a little bit more accessible.
March 23, 2013
A great-grandfather shares his immigration story through the matchbox diary he kept before learning to read.
March 22, 2013
A great-grandfather shares his life’s story with his great-granddaughter who picks out a cigar box filled with matchboxes to find out more about. He has been collecting matchboxes that are filled with small items documenting his life, a diary of objects. They tell of his poor childhood in Italy where he’d be given an olive pit to suck on to make him less hungry. There is a picture of his father who went to work in America and sent money home. His story then turns into one of an immigrant with a trip to the port and then aboard a large ship. He tells of arriving at Ellis Island, of the terror of possibly being denied entrance, and the eventual reunion with his father. The entire family, including the children, worked to earn enough money to survive. Life became better and he learned to read until he started in the printing industry and opened a bookstore.
Fleischman writes of the tentative relationship of a young child and her great-grandfather who are just getting to know one another for the first time. This is a story filled with small gems, treasures of stories that the two of them explore side by side. The small matchboxes are a wonderful device to add surprise and delight to the story. Fleischman has created an entire picture book told only in dialogue, making it a pleasure but challenge to read aloud.
Ibatoulline’s illustrations are precise and detailed. The matchboxes are shown up close and just opened, as if the reader had been the one exploring them. The stories are shown in sepia tones with modern day in full color. They are filled with a beautiful warmth in both cases.
A distinguished picture book, this is a brilliant combination of historical story and vivid illustrations. Appropriate for ages 6-9.
Fleischman writes of the tentative relationship of a young child and her great-grandfather who are just getting to know one another for the first time. This is a story filled with small gems, treasures of stories that the two of them explore side by side. The small matchboxes are a wonderful device to add surprise and delight to the story. Fleischman has created an entire picture book told only in dialogue, making it a pleasure but challenge to read aloud.
Ibatoulline’s illustrations are precise and detailed. The matchboxes are shown up close and just opened, as if the reader had been the one exploring them. The stories are shown in sepia tones with modern day in full color. They are filled with a beautiful warmth in both cases.
A distinguished picture book, this is a brilliant combination of historical story and vivid illustrations. Appropriate for ages 6-9.
March 13, 2013
WOW! I'm not sure I know what to say about this book. I knew when I saw that it was written by Paul Fleischman and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline that it would be a wonderful book. I was not disappointed. The book more than lived up to my expectations. The immigration experience is not a new story, but telling it through the lens of a diary kept by a young boy through small objects he collected and stored in old matchboxes is brilliant. A story told through the objects gathered over a lifetime. The grandfather in the story grew up in Italy and didn't learn to read until moving to America, but he wanted to have a diary so he began collecting items that represented things of importance to him. Each object has seemingly little significance, except in his memory. A tender story of the power of things around us to remind us of important events in our lives.
As for the illustrations, they are exquisite. The detail on the acrylic gouache (watercolor) paintings is amazing. The illustrations are so detailed they almost look like old photographs, which is clearly what the artist was going for. The pictures of the great-grandfather with his granddaughter are done in beautiful shades of color while the pictures representing the stories of his past that he tells are in shades of brown and white. The innocence of the children and the kindness and wisdom of the grandfather shine through very clearly. This is the kind of picture book that I love to just sit and look at because of the beauty of it. I highly recommend this story of family and change and life.
As for the illustrations, they are exquisite. The detail on the acrylic gouache (watercolor) paintings is amazing. The illustrations are so detailed they almost look like old photographs, which is clearly what the artist was going for. The pictures of the great-grandfather with his granddaughter are done in beautiful shades of color while the pictures representing the stories of his past that he tells are in shades of brown and white. The innocence of the children and the kindness and wisdom of the grandfather shine through very clearly. This is the kind of picture book that I love to just sit and look at because of the beauty of it. I highly recommend this story of family and change and life.
September 17, 2013
I absolutely adored Paul Fleischman's picture book, The Matchbox Diary. What really stood out to me about this book was the main character, the great-grandfather of the little kindergarten girl. What an endearing man! I was captured with his story about immigrating from Italy to America. Fleischman did a great job of telling the story through the trinkets the elderly man collected over a lifetime and the memories that they represented. He took ordinary items and made them come to life. The illustrations made the story seem even more realistic. Bagram Ibatoulline made the images look as if they were photographs taken from the great-grandfather's past. The details of the matchboxes and the intricate items that each box contained contributed to the realistic feel of the story. The great-granddaughter was a relatable character for many young readers. This book is heart-warming and engages readers in history. I think this is a lovely picture book that deserves to win the 2014 Caldecott Award!
August 2, 2013
A magnificent picture book about a girl who meets her great-grandfather for the first time, and with the help of little keepsakes in an old cigar box, hears the story of his childhood and his family's journey from Italy to the USA.
Though a story of hardship and struggle, it gains a special beauty and worth when passed on to a younger generation, as though both are now enriched by the experience of one. The text is simple, like an elderly man talking with a child; he remembers, and she chimes in with an occasional question or comment.
The illustrations are a window into the now faded but still emotive pull of memories held dear; we are shown a past re-lived, and it is a treasure.
A marvellous book about history and sacrifice, family and education, and the importance of stories to communicate from one person to another the meaning and value of life.
Reviewed for www.GoodReadingGuide.com
Though a story of hardship and struggle, it gains a special beauty and worth when passed on to a younger generation, as though both are now enriched by the experience of one. The text is simple, like an elderly man talking with a child; he remembers, and she chimes in with an occasional question or comment.
The illustrations are a window into the now faded but still emotive pull of memories held dear; we are shown a past re-lived, and it is a treasure.
A marvellous book about history and sacrifice, family and education, and the importance of stories to communicate from one person to another the meaning and value of life.
Reviewed for www.GoodReadingGuide.com
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March 13, 2015Read/skimmed it quick, but I want to give it a better read when I have time one day.
A great-grandfather meets his granddaughter for the first time, and offers to tell her a story about any item she picks out from his collection. She picks out a box of matchboxes, each containing small objects - this is his childhood diary that he started in Italy and kept while his family immigrated to America and started a new life.
Interesting story for adults, though I'm not sure how much kids will appreciate it. The illustrations are amazing.
I am kind of confused by the one illustration of him, his mother, and sisters though - he's dressed as I'd expected for the estimated time period, but they look like they're dressed almost in medieval or renaissance clothing. It could be the veils throwing me off...
A great-grandfather meets his granddaughter for the first time, and offers to tell her a story about any item she picks out from his collection. She picks out a box of matchboxes, each containing small objects - this is his childhood diary that he started in Italy and kept while his family immigrated to America and started a new life.
Interesting story for adults, though I'm not sure how much kids will appreciate it. The illustrations are amazing.
I am kind of confused by the one illustration of him, his mother, and sisters though - he's dressed as I'd expected for the estimated time period, but they look like they're dressed almost in medieval or renaissance clothing. It could be the veils throwing me off...
March 23, 2013
Moving story from one of my favorite writers, Paul Fleischman, combine perfectly with warm, detailed, beautifully made illustrations from one of my new favorite illustrators, Bagram Ibatoulline. Four well-deserved stars so far. Highly recommended. Can you say Caldecott?
January 4, 2018
Wonderful! What a lovely story, and beautiful illustrations!
August 3, 2018
The word 'immigration' caught my eye when looking at books in the library. It was a cute story of an Italian great grandfather telling his great granddaughter was life was like for him in Italy and traveling over to America. He had an unique way to keep his memories, since he could not read or write at the time. Also, it discussed the struggles and successes that him and his family had when they first moved to America. It's a good story that middle grade students can discuss (even the illustrations), just wished it had a little more energy or deeper meaning to it.
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November 30, 2016The story starts out with a grandfather and a granddaughter in a store room. The grandfather tells the granddaughter to pick anything, and he'll tell her the story behind it. She chose a collection of matchboxes. The grandfather used the matchboxes to hold objects that remind him of different times. The first was an olive pit, which reminded him of growing up in Italy, and of the poverty and hardships he experienced there. Next there was a photo of his father. He went to America to work, and to send money back at home. The story behind the picture talks about the lack of education experiences by everyone in his family. A piece of macaroni reminds him of a summer draught and food shortage when he received tickets to America from his father. A bottle cap reminds him of the first time he drank from a bottle, the first time he saw an ocean. This is also when he firsts found the matchboxes he used for his diary. Other matchboxes reminded him of the boat journey to America. Sunflower seeds in a matchbox counted the days of the journey. The empty box reminded him of the health inspections at Ellis Island, the box once held candy. Fishbones remind the grandfather of the terrible working conditions at the canning factory. Newspaper clippings were used to remember where the journey for work took him and his family. The tooth is a reminder of the discrimination the grandfather faced in the new world. Another matchbox held baseball tickets, the little ray of happiness in a hard life. Coal reminded him of his mother's desire for him to go to school. The letters from a printing press call back to his time working as a printer.
The illustrations supplement the narration, but they also showcase the mementos in the matchboxes when the text does not implicitly state what is in them. The story is a fictional family history, but the experiences described are easily checked against primary sources for authenticity and historical correctness. The story, though set in modern times, gives a window into the past for all readers to experience.
The illustrations supplement the narration, but they also showcase the mementos in the matchboxes when the text does not implicitly state what is in them. The story is a fictional family history, but the experiences described are easily checked against primary sources for authenticity and historical correctness. The story, though set in modern times, gives a window into the past for all readers to experience.
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November 30, 2016When a little girl visits her great-grandfather in his antique filled home, she comes across an old cigar box; inside, she finds the most peculiar things. Matchboxes filled with objects that her great-grandfather had saved, each object evoking a memory from his time as a boy growing up in Italy, to the his immigration to the United States on a boat to Ellis Island. Each matchbox had its own unique story to it.
The box is a splendid, imaginative journey of a boy's immigration to the United States. The story represents historical fiction because it covers the journey of a ship to Ellis Island, and the tests immigrants had to take in order to enter the country. The story's setting is clever; it is within the memories of the matchboxes, each one containing a different time within the great-grandfather's life. The plot of the story is simplistic and enjoyable as the matchbox objects are the driving force and main concept behind hearing the great-grandfather's stories. There is no real conflict, but the great-grandfather is trying to influence his great-granddaughter to find an outlet of remembering the most precious moments in her life. The theme is this historical fiction is to cherish and remember the memories we have, for they can easily be forgotten.
The visual elements of the story are very exquisite and unique. Each memory evoked from a matchbox is displayed in a "black and white" or older, in what appears to be, photographs. The photographs are very realistic but you can tell that the characters in the images are not actually "real", for the lack of a better word. The attention to detail in any object within the illustrations are uncanny and the readers really feel like we are seeing memories unfold in real time.
The box is a splendid, imaginative journey of a boy's immigration to the United States. The story represents historical fiction because it covers the journey of a ship to Ellis Island, and the tests immigrants had to take in order to enter the country. The story's setting is clever; it is within the memories of the matchboxes, each one containing a different time within the great-grandfather's life. The plot of the story is simplistic and enjoyable as the matchbox objects are the driving force and main concept behind hearing the great-grandfather's stories. There is no real conflict, but the great-grandfather is trying to influence his great-granddaughter to find an outlet of remembering the most precious moments in her life. The theme is this historical fiction is to cherish and remember the memories we have, for they can easily be forgotten.
The visual elements of the story are very exquisite and unique. Each memory evoked from a matchbox is displayed in a "black and white" or older, in what appears to be, photographs. The photographs are very realistic but you can tell that the characters in the images are not actually "real", for the lack of a better word. The attention to detail in any object within the illustrations are uncanny and the readers really feel like we are seeing memories unfold in real time.
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April 22, 2017This historical fiction picture book tells the story of a little girl’s great-grandfather’s matchbox diary. He could not read or write, so her great-grandfather kept small knick-knacks in empty matchboxes to represent memories while he longed to learn to read and write. This book would best be used at the third grade level.
This book could be used in a lesson about immigration, which could be a cultural lesson in which students share where their families came from, why they came to America and when. This could also be used to talk about keeping a diary to remember things, whether it be a journal or diary for school purposes (writing, math, science, and being able to refer to it later) or for personal use. Finally, this book could also be used for English language learning students. Students might relate to this story in terms of life as an immigrant in a new country, or about learning a new language, but how important perseverance is.
This was a WOW book for me because of the literacy message it sends. Although her great-grandfather could not read or write, he still found a way to keep his memories; this did not keep him from doing what he wanted. This book has many implications for connecting students to this book through their lived experiences or those of their family members; making students and where they come from a part of the classroom is important and should be done when possible.
This book could be used in a lesson about immigration, which could be a cultural lesson in which students share where their families came from, why they came to America and when. This could also be used to talk about keeping a diary to remember things, whether it be a journal or diary for school purposes (writing, math, science, and being able to refer to it later) or for personal use. Finally, this book could also be used for English language learning students. Students might relate to this story in terms of life as an immigrant in a new country, or about learning a new language, but how important perseverance is.
This was a WOW book for me because of the literacy message it sends. Although her great-grandfather could not read or write, he still found a way to keep his memories; this did not keep him from doing what he wanted. This book has many implications for connecting students to this book through their lived experiences or those of their family members; making students and where they come from a part of the classroom is important and should be done when possible.
November 6, 2013
A 5-year-old girl visits her great grandfather for the first time, and is fascinated by all the keepsakes and memorabilia on display in his library.
"Pick one you like, then I'll tell you its story," says her great grandfather. The little girl chooses an old cigar box, which turns out to be tightly packed with little matchboxes. As he slides each one open, her great grandfather explains their contents. Growing up in Italy, he had had a hard life, and had not learned how to read or write. In order to keep a diary, he started keeping tiny items in these boxes, each representing a part of his story. And one by one, he opens them and tells his great granddaughter about his life, long ago.
This unusual, charming, and innovative picture book defies categorization. Bagram Ibatoulline has created detailed illustrations so perfect that they seem like photographs. To separate the old times from present times, he draws great grandfather's boyhood stories in black and white or sepia, while his drawings of present-day life are in full color. I found the illustrations so compelling that I sat and stared at each one for a long time.
Although formatted as a picture book, it is unlikely that a preschooler would be interested in this book. The subject matter and illustrations lend themselves more to a child a bit older, perhaps 6-10.
"Pick one you like, then I'll tell you its story," says her great grandfather. The little girl chooses an old cigar box, which turns out to be tightly packed with little matchboxes. As he slides each one open, her great grandfather explains their contents. Growing up in Italy, he had had a hard life, and had not learned how to read or write. In order to keep a diary, he started keeping tiny items in these boxes, each representing a part of his story. And one by one, he opens them and tells his great granddaughter about his life, long ago.
This unusual, charming, and innovative picture book defies categorization. Bagram Ibatoulline has created detailed illustrations so perfect that they seem like photographs. To separate the old times from present times, he draws great grandfather's boyhood stories in black and white or sepia, while his drawings of present-day life are in full color. I found the illustrations so compelling that I sat and stared at each one for a long time.
Although formatted as a picture book, it is unlikely that a preschooler would be interested in this book. The subject matter and illustrations lend themselves more to a child a bit older, perhaps 6-10.
November 22, 2016
When a little girl visits her beloved great-grandfather at his home, she chooses a peculiar object to learn about. This object is an old cigar box that is filled with her great-grandfathers memories, each item meaning more than the last. Throughout the visit she learns about each object and its harboring story. Each item told about his life back in Italy, before he reached his new home in a different country. Each item was given by a different individual who allowed for new, precious memories to be spilled from this great-grandfather to his great-granddaughter out of love and compassion.
This book allows for the reader to see each portion of history as this great-grandfather travels through his journey from Italia to his new country. It explores the tiniest of details of his life that show background into revolution and a new-founded happiness. As the old man shares his stories, sweet hand-drawn images of the little girl and him come together to show the warmth of his large office. Each image, along with paragraphs to the side of the images, allows the reader to feel the love that he has for her. Each story unfolds a new emotion and love for the old man and his adventures. The pages appear old and worn, with a large image on one side and a small one under the paragraph. All of the elements together create warm, life like images.
This book allows for the reader to see each portion of history as this great-grandfather travels through his journey from Italia to his new country. It explores the tiniest of details of his life that show background into revolution and a new-founded happiness. As the old man shares his stories, sweet hand-drawn images of the little girl and him come together to show the warmth of his large office. Each image, along with paragraphs to the side of the images, allows the reader to feel the love that he has for her. Each story unfolds a new emotion and love for the old man and his adventures. The pages appear old and worn, with a large image on one side and a small one under the paragraph. All of the elements together create warm, life like images.
February 28, 2013
Although he couldn't read and write, an Italian immigrant finds a way to keep a record of the events in his life. He places a token of an event in a small matchbox, and then stashes them in a cigar box. When his great-granddaughter comes to pay her respects and get to know the old man, she is fascinated with all the things he has. When she chooses the cigar box, he uses its contents to tell his story about life back home and then coming to the United States where he and his family faced prejudice and mistreatment. Eventually, he goes to school, becomes a printer, and later, opens his own bookstore. As the girl is drawn closer to her relative through the stories, she expresses a desire to keep a diary of her own. The story is tenderly told, and is perfectly supported by the lovely acrylic and gouache illustrations that almost seem to emit light while showing perfectly the emotions of the book's characters.
February 3, 2016
The Matchbox Diary is a story about a great granddaughter who is discovering what her great grandfather's life was like in Italy. It was very interesting to hear his point of view about growing up and immigrating to America at a young age. The story discusses how the great grandfather would keep little momentos from his life as a diary. This connects to the little girl because she is only five years old and can not read or write.
This story could be used in a 3rd-5th grade classroom for both social studies and reading purposes. Teachers could use this in social studies to look at an immigrant's experience traveling from Italy to America. The book touches on the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and discrimination.
Teachers could also use this story in a reading class to discuss predicting or inferencing. The illustrations show what is in the matchbox and students can use the clues to predict or infer why the great grandfather hid what he did in the box.
This story could be used in a 3rd-5th grade classroom for both social studies and reading purposes. Teachers could use this in social studies to look at an immigrant's experience traveling from Italy to America. The book touches on the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and discrimination.
Teachers could also use this story in a reading class to discuss predicting or inferencing. The illustrations show what is in the matchbox and students can use the clues to predict or infer why the great grandfather hid what he did in the box.
November 28, 2016
In this story, a little girl discovers her great-grandfather’s diary. It is not a typical diary, but a special “Matchbox Diary”. Each tiny box contains a little memento that her great-grandfather uses to tell his story. The young girl learns about his childhood and immigration from Italy to the United States. He goes on to tell her of some of the struggles he faced establishing a new life in America with his family.
This historical picture book relays a fictionalized family history. The grandfather in the story tells of his childhood and the experiences that led him to keep a matchbox diary. He shares his life story with his grandchild while opening tiny matchboxes containing little pieces from the past. The illustrations revealing the past resemble old black and white photographs while the present scenes in the story are in full color. This is a rich and heart warming story of a grandfather’s cherished life memories.
This historical picture book relays a fictionalized family history. The grandfather in the story tells of his childhood and the experiences that led him to keep a matchbox diary. He shares his life story with his grandchild while opening tiny matchboxes containing little pieces from the past. The illustrations revealing the past resemble old black and white photographs while the present scenes in the story are in full color. This is a rich and heart warming story of a grandfather’s cherished life memories.
September 7, 2013
Title / Author / Publication Date: The Matchbox Diary/Paul Fleischman/2013
Genre: Fiction
Format: Hardcover
Plot summary: In this children's story, by Newbery Medalist Paul Fleischman and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline, "when a little girl visits her great-grandfather at his curio-filled home, she chooses an unusual object to learn about: an old cigar box. What she finds inside surprises her: a collection of matchboxes making up her great-grandfather's diary. . . . Together they tell of his journey from Italy to a new country, before he could read and write." (Publisher's note)
Considerations or precautions for readers advisory: None
Review citation: Rochmon, H. (2013). The Matchbox Diary (Book Review). Booklist, 109(15), 46.
Section source used to find the material: Children's Core Collection, Most Highly Recommended
Recommended age: 6 and up
Genre: Fiction
Format: Hardcover
Plot summary: In this children's story, by Newbery Medalist Paul Fleischman and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline, "when a little girl visits her great-grandfather at his curio-filled home, she chooses an unusual object to learn about: an old cigar box. What she finds inside surprises her: a collection of matchboxes making up her great-grandfather's diary. . . . Together they tell of his journey from Italy to a new country, before he could read and write." (Publisher's note)
Considerations or precautions for readers advisory: None
Review citation: Rochmon, H. (2013). The Matchbox Diary (Book Review). Booklist, 109(15), 46.
Section source used to find the material: Children's Core Collection, Most Highly Recommended
Recommended age: 6 and up
August 12, 2016
There seemed to be more sentiment than substance and believability to this story, but the device of the matchboxes was an intriguing way to structure and pace things. It held my attention. Historical fiction/family history is an interesting combo of two known genres.
While I enjoyed the hyper-realism of the matchboxes and objects, the photorealism of the figures was uninteresting. I would have preferred something more stylized. When a picturebook artist tries to copy photography it makes me think there's something they're trying to hide or apologize for--that they don't know enough about painting and drawing to come up with something different than photography. The compositions were good, but again not showing a sense of imagination. This is the kind of thing that will make the book more annoying to me the more I think about it over the next few days.
While I enjoyed the hyper-realism of the matchboxes and objects, the photorealism of the figures was uninteresting. I would have preferred something more stylized. When a picturebook artist tries to copy photography it makes me think there's something they're trying to hide or apologize for--that they don't know enough about painting and drawing to come up with something different than photography. The compositions were good, but again not showing a sense of imagination. This is the kind of thing that will make the book more annoying to me the more I think about it over the next few days.
November 24, 2016
The Matchbox Diary by Paul Fleischman was a story about a little girl that went to visit her great grandfathers shop. When she came to visit, he then told her to pick an object in the room and he'd tell her the story behind it. When she picked the object, it was her great grandfather's diary made from matchboxes. In each matchbox, there were small objects that held a different story to each one. The illustrations then show flashbacks through time and the little girl learns all about her great grandfather's eventful life.
The story has some references as to how it could be considered historical fiction. For one, it used elements of the past when the great grandfather had flashbacks going through his matchbox diary. The illustrations would make the reader feel as if they were witnessing his hardships with his family moving to the new country through an old film.
The story has some references as to how it could be considered historical fiction. For one, it used elements of the past when the great grandfather had flashbacks going through his matchbox diary. The illustrations would make the reader feel as if they were witnessing his hardships with his family moving to the new country through an old film.
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November 29, 2016This story is about a granddad explaining his 'diary' to his granddaughter. Since he didn't know how to read or write when he was growing up, he collected important possessions that would help him remember what he was feeling that day or a memory that he never wanted to forget. He kept them in little match boxes. When his granddaughter found them, he explained each one to her. The historical fiction elements are especially shown through the pictures. Some of them contain the family sailing to America. Some of them contain horses pulling wagons for means of transportation. It really helps the reader see how life was back then and puts us in their shoes. The illustrations looked like paintings. They were detailed and looked realistic.
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