At Ellis Island: A History in Many Voices

by Louise Peacock, Walter Lyon Krudop (Illustrator)

Ellis Island was the gateway to America and the promise of freedom for thousands. Its walls are rich with stories. Its walls are rich with stories. In this book we hear myriad of those voices. First we follow a young person today. Her great-great-grandmother entered America through Ellis Island. As this young girl walks the halls of the famous site, she wonders about the past, the people, and their hopes, dreams and challenges.

Here, too, is the voice of Sera, an Armenian girl from the early 1900s. Fleeing the unthinkable in her home country, she longs to join her father in America. As Sera enters the halls of Ellis Island, she lives those same hopes, dreams, and challenges.

The voices of real immigrants -- their suffering in steerage, their first glimpse of the Statue of Liberty, and their journey through the Great Hall -- complete this touching look into an important part of America's history. A pivotal time and place is brought to life through a combination of many voices speaking in harmony.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Picture Books, Immigration, Historical, American History, Childrens, Realistic Fiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published May 22, 2007

About the author

Louise Peacock, who has always been interested in history, took a PhD in medieval studies before turning to children's liturature. Her first book, Crossing the Delaware, was inspired by a trip with her son to Washington's Crossing.
Dr. Peacock lives in Haslett, Michigan.

Reviews

[Melanie Guerra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this to my daughter last night and was struck by the standards and principles Americans and immigrants alike once held to. There are deep lessons in these stories... real sacrifice, self-reliance, obligation, sincere appreciation for the privilege of being can American. Many of these lessons have been lost recently, and should be taught once again. This book should be read by all Americans.

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

Gives a vivid picture of what it was like to step onto Ellis Island and go through the process of entering the United States. The pictures and excerpts from interviews with immigrants made it come to life.

[Chantelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really well-done historical book with elements of both fiction and nonfiction. It is a quick read, a picture book with lots of examples of primary documents. A great book to use in class as an example of a nonfiction text.

Also - an excellent representation of the Ellis Island experience.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very informative and moving read, with quotes/journal entries from many children that immigrated to America. Some of the children left familiarity behind for a chance at a better life; others fled from persecution just to live.

Ages: 8 - 12

Cleanliness: a few stories talk about the persecutions, like a child witnessing thousands of people burned in a church. "Oh, my Lord" is said.

**Like my reviews? I also have hundreds of detailed reports that I offer too. These reports give a complete break-down of everything in the book, so you'll know just how clean it is or isn't. I also have Clean Guides (downloadable PDFs) which enable you to clean up your book before reading it!

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[L11-Sharri Moses · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives us three different perspectives of experiences at Ellis Island. Ellis Island was considered the gateway to America and the promise of freedom for millions of immigrants. It is also where the Statue of Liberty stands as a symbol for freedom. One perspective is from a girl escaping the Armenian genocide and she is going to meet her father in America. She is under age and is lonely and scared so she writes to her mother for strength and comfort. In her letters, she explains her hardships at the bottom of the ship, of the bad food, of people sick and dying around her. The second perspective is from a modern girl visiting Ellis Island and searching for information about her great-great grandmother that came through Ellis Island almost 100 years earlier. She explains some of the rooms at Ellis Island like the Registry Room and tells stories that she has heard passed down about what it was like to be inspected and registered. The third perspective is from immigrants that actually went through Ellis Island and there are direct quotes from them. This book would be good to use with grades 3-7, but you would have to explicitly teach them how to read through this book. It could be confusing if they do not understand that there are three different perspectives going on in each page. The fictional girl has her writing in “handwriting”, letter form. The modern girl visiting Ellis Island is written in red ink. The quotes are followed with a name, when they arrived and their age. There are great nonfiction books that could be read along with this book. A few that you could use are Ellis Island: An Illustrated History of the Immigrant Experience written by Ivan Chermayeff and Ellis Island: New Hope in a New Land by Williams Jay Jacob. There are also great websites to explore like, “Ellis Island National Monument” http://www.nps.gov/elis/ and scholastic has a virtual tour of Ellis Island at http://teacher.scholastic.com/activit....

[Ebookwormy1 · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a huge fan of the growing use of first person accounts organized for children, I was prepared to adore this book. Unfortunately, I found it a hodge podge of fiction and non-fiction material, of multiple fonts in assorted colors, various photographs and illustrations, -- all trying to be as big as possible. In short, I found it confusing, and the visual effect of the layout was awful.

I do not like the combination of fictional and non-fiction material. If the fictional account had been set off more effectively (larger perhaps, with small boxes providing additional clarification), perhaps it could have helped, but this book is a visual mess. The illustrations and photographs are presented side by side and we constantly had to stop to talk about what is "real" and what is a fictionalized accounting. Elementary kids are very concrete! There are numerous fonts in variant colors on each page - yuck! If you are an artist or someone who works in design, do not purchase this book, it will give you nightmares.

All of this is unfortunate, because the information is interesting. Hearing from children who passed through Ellis Island in their own words is lovely. I wish the book could be redone with a more competent designer so we could better understand and appreciate what has been done. I also wish the author had limited to either historical fiction or non-fiction. I can only recommend this as a library check out for those who can creatively overcome it's limitations, otherwise, I think/ hope there are better Ellis Island resources.

Goodreads community, please include comments on what you would recommend instead.

[Corinne Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this one out loud to my 8 1/2 year old daughter, at her request. I'd actually bought the book for myself; I have a very soft spot in my heart for Ellis Island and immigration stories in general, since my Great-Grandmother's family immigrated here from Czechoslovakia at the turn of the century.

The book is set up as a series of quotes of actual immigrants who came to America during Ellis Island's busiest period, as well as quotes by people who were employed there at the time. They are interspersed with a fictionalized account of one girl, following her in letters as she leaves Armenia to come alone to the U.S. to meet her father. There are also short bits about what Ellis Island looks like to a visitor today.

The quotes are fascinating and often moving. The young girl's storyline provides a good framework for understanding the start to finish process of immigration during the time. I found the format, though, a bit confusing. I think if it had been all quotes, or just the letters in a picture book, it would've flowed better for me. My daughter though, wasn't bothered by it at all. I kept trying to show her when I was switching between letters and quotes and she finally stopped me short telling me, "I get it, Mom!" Maybe I've just read too many novels :)

This is an interesting introduction to immigration history in America for young people. I do recommend it.

[Shaeley Santiago · Rating 3 out of 5]

Told from the perspective of Sera, a young girl traveling to America to be reunited with her father after the death of her mother, the story comes to life. It is also intertwined with quotes from actual immigrants and facts about Ellis Island including those passed down to the author from her grandmother's grandmother.

Pay attention to the typeface so you don't get confused in the story. It's almost better to read through it three separate times following the different story lines.

[Kelley Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it, but I'm afraid the format would be hard to follow for an elementary reader. The "story" of Sera is in an easy to read cursive on each page. There are also paragraphs that stand alone containing quotes and facts. Usually they are separated by frames or font (or both). As a 49 year old librarian, I found the graphic and structural supports adequate to keep the story straight. I'm not sure a 9 year old who isn't a strong reader wouldn't struggle

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome I couldn't find a book better than this I love the history but made it into a bigger one. I love that she uses real facts And Fake people in the Story like sierra and losing her mother and writing a story about her and her papa finding her. I think this should be read to Americans everyday to remind Them of the freedom that we have And what some countries don't have.

[Emmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Partially sweet little book with excerpts from stories told by those who came through Ellis island interspersed with the story of little made up Sera. I would have liked to know more or wished it was a bit more focused on the actual histories but it certainly functions as an introduction.

[Alyssa Ricard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Voices of those who came to this country for freedom and for a much better life. This was so touching and inspiring to hear so many different voices and stories.

[Jesseca Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

The format was confusing

[Savannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It is the first book that I gave 5 stars to out of all of the books I have read for my journal assignment so far. The book contained real letters from passengers who traveled over to America on ships, and then those who came through Ellis Island. It tells tales of struggles and freedom, incorporating real pictures into the pages to give a glimpse of what it was really like. This caused the book to be more real and eye-opening. I loved this book because it was done in a collage way with real pictures and letters combined with information about the immigration. You could use this book in a classroom to teach about the immigrants, ancestry, history, and many more topics. Kids would really love this book as well because it shows real pictures as well as illustrated ones that were done with some sort of oil pastel it appears.

[Amy Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fiction picture book that mixes in non-fictions elements. It tells the story of many children who came through Ellis Island through excerpts of their own letters and through the fictional letters of Sera, a 10 year old Armenian girl, to her dead mother as she travels to America alone. Actual photos as well as illustrations are included. Sera’s story pulls at the heartstrings but the letter excerpts and photos really make the book. They pull the reader into the era and the lives of American immigrants. A great story that I would recommend to children 3rd grade and up. I think it would be a great addition to a social studies lesson on Ellis Island or immigration. Recommended.

[Shelly♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot. It told the story of Serah who was coming to meet her father in America from Armenia where there was civil war of some kind. She is writing a letters to her mother. This part of the book is fiction. But on each page where she talks about certain parts of her trip, there are also quotes from real people who went through the same thing and drawings and pictures of what it was like.

My family came through Ellis Island, so this was a great book to read to my kids on what it might have been like for our family members.

Highly recommend!

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really well done - not too long for the younger ones, all about children, full of information and pictures (although, we would have liked even more pictures). My nine year old was particularly riveted and really tried to imagine what it would be like to be sent back to her native country when she'd come all that way to Ellis Island. A very worthwile read, especially if you're studying that period of American history.

[Cathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely little book, filled with great illustrations by Walter Lyon Krudop and also many wonderful photographs taken from the National Archives. The book imagines a little girl named Sera and her experiences as she comes to America, and it also contains quotes from many early 20th century immigrants who came through Ellis Island. It's a great introductory book for young readers who want to learn about our country's rich history of immigration, from approximately one hundred years ago.

[Jody Kyburz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't read about the immigrant experience without having tears well up in my eyes. This is a short picture book (fiction AND nonfiction) with illustrations and photographs about the Ellis Island Experience. There's a main story that runs through, and then there are all these captions and excerpts on each page--sort of choppy for my liking, but I did read every word!

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this picture book. The author Louise Peacock created a wonderful depiction of what the lives of these immigrants were like by using a "journal" format throughout much of the book. The illustrations added a great deal of value to the story and will certainly give the reader a more empathetic view of this time in history.

[Kelly McMillan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good book. I almost cried as I was reading all the different stories that people had to share. I know that things like this really happened, and I could never imagine going through that myself.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a great book. It must have been hard for Sera she had to travel all alone on one of the boats and when she got to dock the managers for the Ellis Island enter estate almost sent her home. Porter was here:)

[Connie T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fictional story of a young girl traveling to America and passing through Ellis Island. Historical photos and actual quotes from immigrants and customs workers add depth to the story but also make it a tad confusing; pay attention to the various fonts.

[sarafem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great kid's book about the history of immigration in the US. I love the rich details in this book - tells stories of real people who went through Ellis Island.

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the modern and historical perspective of this book. Having been to Ellis Island, it was all the more real to me.

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this historical fiction book for children! I like how the author uses illustrations as well as real photographs from the past to tell the story.

[Precious]

i think it is a good book

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This will be a wonderful story to read to my children. It gives real perspective from the immigrants view of how much courage it took to cross the ocean and start over.

[Rebecca Osburn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great collection of different points of view regarding immigration.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cool structure with fictional narrative, real quotes, and generalized history running throughout. Lots to discuss around immigration.