A Very Important Day

by Maggie Rugg Herold, Catherine Stock (Illustrator)

"Captures the excitement of immigrants who are becoming U.S. citizens. All across New York City, people are preparing for 'a very important day'...not the least bit daunted by a snowstorm....A tale told with vigor, exuberantly displayed in Stock's people-filled watercolor landscapes and cozy interior scenes of all the pre-oath preparations, this is a thoughtful celebration of one of this country's most meaningful ceremonies."--Kirkus Reviews.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published August 14, 1995

Reviews

[Barb Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this story set in NYC. Tells how a family that imigrated to the USA become citizens.

[Colleen]

We the People - unit 8
Leveled Books - Intermediate

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Captures the excitement of immigrants who are becoming U.S. citizens. All across New York City, people are preparing for 'a very important day'...not the least bit daunted by a snowstorm....A tale told with vigor, exuberantly displayed in Stock's people-filled watercolor landscapes and cozy interior scenes of all the pre-oath preparations, this is a thoughtful celebration of one of this country's most meaningful ceremonies."--Kirkus Reviews.

[Heidi Burkhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful picture book about immigration and gaining citizenship in the US. I especially like the way the writer included people from many countries in this book.

This book is more timely now than even when it was written. It is a good reminder that the US is made up of many immigrants who came to the US over the centuries.

Stock's watercolor illustrations are perfection, as always.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the snow falls, multiple families make their way to the courthouse in order to become citizens of the United State.s

Includes information on how to become a citizen and also includes the full text of the oath.

[jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy reading this story with my students!

[Christy Whitaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

This realistic, yet fictional story introduces the various cultures inhabiting New York. Several families of immigrants have finally reached the day they are to become U.S. citizens. To make this day an even better adventure, snow, an experience some of the cultures represented has not encountered, is piled on the ground and falling from the sky. The author, Maggie Herold, uses names reflective of the cultures represented (ex. . However, I would like to have seen more ideas significant to each culture present in the literature. The illustrator, Catherine Stock, used watercolors for each illustration. These images, covered with the painted snow, lack clarity. Even though I enjoy reading about all the immigrants and appreciate their hardships in becoming citizens, I would not use this book in my classroom unless I had upper year elementary students. It is too long for early readers to sit through and they may not be able to follow the story without adequate pictures to illustrate the text. For advanced readers, it provides an outline for the process of citizenship immigrants experience. The multiple cultures represented in the text, could allow a teacher to introduce more diversity to the classroom.

[Jasmin Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is about the various cultures that inhabit New York City and the joy of finally becoming a US citizen. The story takes on multiple perspectives of immigrants that depict the joy they all share for the special day they have all been waiting for. But not only do they share the excitement for their big day but the joy for experiencing snow for the first time ever or in a long while. The snow being the icing on the cake for their special day. The book was written by Maggie Rugg Herold and illustrated by Catherine Stock. Herold's use of multiple perspectives left it for little detail in the true feelings of happiness and struggle each family felt. I would've liked to see more detail in a few families instead of the bunch she had. Stock's illustrations were interesting but in my opinion lacked detail that made them interesting. As a teacher, I probably would not use the story with early learning readers because it is too long to keep the reader’s attention and they may not find the pictures as captivating and interesting. But I would use it for future reference to explain the process of becoming a US citezin if the topic were to come up with older readers.

[Alicia Rotter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Becoming a United States Citizen makes for a very important day. This book introduces a number of families experiencing this very special day. The added season change makes the day that much more exciting for the families.

This book offers a really great insight on what it might be like for families traveling from all the world and making the commitment to become a U.S. citizen. I liked how the book brought in so many different perspectives. Instead of the families simply being from Mexico or Canada, the author chose many different cultural backgrounds to talk bout. While there was a lot of diversity in the book, I felt this also dragged the book on quite a while. The amount of families introduced didn't offer any character development and overwhelmed me, personally. I had a hard time being able to pay attention the the story line. This is something to keep in mind when reading it to young children. They might also find it difficult to find interest in this book. However, I though this book offered a lot of great things to talk about in the classroom during different American and national holidays.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Like: A story of becoming a United States citizen being a very important day, and especially the book including an informative piece at the end describing what becoming a citizen entails.

Dislike: The author trying too hard and including too many characters that are only mentioned in passing. It makes for a long and uninteresting read. Showcasing just a family or two (instead of 12!)would have hit the point much more effectively and made sense to children. Also, did not appreciate a provocative illustrative advertisement on a bus mid-book. It makes no sense to the scene and not of the uplifting nature children deserve. That being said, it will go unseen by most.

[Yasmin Gomez Geng]

I nearly cried as I read the book.

At first, I was very confused because all different kinds of families were gathering and there didn't seem to be much similarity. However, at a point in the book, the reader starts to hear that today is the day that family came from {China, India, Scotland, etc]. And then I realized what was happening. Each family is becoming a citizen of the United States.

Grade: 3rd - 6th Grade
Topic: United States, Citizenship, Government, Immigration

[Naomi]

Captures the excitement of immigrants who are becoming U.S. citizens. All across New York City, people are preparing for 'a very important day' – the day they can be sworn in as citizens of the United States.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will winter's snows keep various immigrant families from getting to their citizenship ceremony? Great multicultural book.

[Rayana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like

[Rebecca Jones]

This book is about a group of immigrants who are now becoming U.S. citizens. The illustrator uses watercolor landscapes to create a great imaginary aspect to such a powerful story.