This is a curious Christmas book to share here in Australia because it recounts the history of migrants to the US who arrive in New York and who were 'processed' on Ellis Island.
Publisher blurb: Krysia does not want to leave her home and her friend, Michi, but there are soldiers with guns on the streets and her mother says that they must go. Krysia, her two brothers, and her mother pack their favorite belongings and begin the long, harrowing journey to America. Krysia is scared but she finds courage when she thinks of her father waiting for her in America with the promise of a better tomorrow. Inspired by Maxinne Rhea Leighton's father's journey from Poland to America, this is a powerful reminder of the beacon of hope and opportunity that Ellis Island symbolized and the importance of family at Christmastime.
I enjoyed the discovery of this book because many years ago I visited Ellis Island (on the recommendation of a friend) and I did the audio tour where you follow the footsteps of someone arriving on Ellis Island. Later I also did a fabulous tenement tour where you also followed on family and discovered how they lived between 1892 and 1924. How did I come to read this book? Well, I found it at a recent charity book sale for just $1. This book was published in 1992. I wonder how this copy came to Australia and who has had it on their shelves before it reached the book sale?
"Upon reaching the New York harbour, steerage-class passengers were transferred from the steamship to a barge that took them to Ellis Island. After disembarking, they walked under a canopy, through the baggage room, and up the stairs. In the Registry Room each person had to go through a routine inspection and medical examination that lasted between three and five hours. ... Passing meant entry into America; failing meant detainment or deportment back to the very country the immigrant had just left. "
Here are other books illustrated by Dennis Nolan - his style is very painterly.
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