Cross-Cultural Understanding

As products of our own distinct cultures and upbringings, each of us sees the world through a different lens. However, in view of the violence and unrest of the last few years, many people living in the United States are mystified by the conflicting ways by which those who share our globe perceive and understand events. Why do some Muslims hate us? Why do most Europeans share an opposing view of the war in Iraq? What constitute basic human values, in our own country and abroad? How can there be such fundamental differences in worldview.

For young people growing up in any age, "Who am I?" has been a core question–to be followed, in part, by the complementary question, "Who are all those other people?" It is a fact of 21st-century life that "all those other people" are not just the neighbors down the street, or classmates at school, or the 294 million U.S. residents; they are also the 6.4 billion people around the world whose lives increasingly intersect with our own. Although we no longer explore our world in sailing ships, Emily Dickinson's words still ring true: "There is no frigate like a book/To take us lands away." Through books, young readers can look at their country through someone else's eyes, including those classmates who are the children of immigrants. They can look beyond the borders of this country to the lives of young people around the world, beyond the apparent but often spurious familiarity nurtured by television and computers.

The multicultural nature of this year's American Library Association book awards highlights our renewed interest in exploring others' experiences. The following list offers a selection of the many excellent books published in the last few years for elementary, middle school, and high school students to be used to foster greater cross-cultural understanding.

Fiction

HOFFMAN, Mary. The Color of Home. illus. by Karin Littlewood. Dial. 2002. Tr $15.99. ISBN 0-8037-2841-7.

K-Gr 3–When young Hassan, a Muslim boy attending his first day of school in America, paints a picture of the destruction of his Somalian home, a compassionate teacher helps him tell his story. Illustrated with watercolors that reflect the boy's own poster paintings and make clear the contrast between tropical Somalia and Hassan's seemingly gray new world, this is a moving reminder of what lies in the past for some children new to the United States.

KRISHNASWAMI, Uma. Monsoon. illus. by Jamel Akib. Farrar. 2003. Tr $16. ISBN 0-374-35015-9.

PreS-Gr 4–Like people all across India, a child and her family wait through the dusty heat, hoping for the promised monsoon to come. The wonderfully descriptive language, including a few Hindi words, is complemented by full-page and double-spread chalk-pastel illustrations that add to the sense of the crowded city, the heat, the anticipation, and wonderful relief of the perfect rain.

LANDOWNE, Youme. Sélavi: A Haitian Story of Hope. illus. by author. Cinco Puntos. 2004. Tr $17.95. ISBN 0-938317-84-9.

K-Gr 4–Displaced by army troops, a Haitian orphan finds a home with other children on the streets of Port-au-Prince. With the help of caring adults, they build a shelter as well as a children's radio station. Illustrated with bordered watercolors in the Haitian style, this fictionalized account is based on the stories of many children. An afterword by Edwidge Danticat provides a short history of Haiti and describes the current condition of street children living in this impoverished country.

LOOK, Lenore. Ruby Lu, Brave and True. illus. by Anne Wilsdorf. S & S. 2004. RTE $15.95. ISBN 0-689-84907-9.

Gr 1-4–Almost every day is a good day for seven-year-old Ruby Lu, even when she has to go to Chinese school on Saturday, or her baby brother Oscar gives away her magician secrets, or immigrant relatives arrive to live in her house. Stand-alone chapters make this an easy reader full of entertaining adventures including Ruby's driving the family car and her dealings with a bullying neighbor.

MARSDEN, Carolyn. The Gold-Threaded Dress. illus. by author. Candlewick. 2002. RTE $14.99. ISBN 0-7636-1569-2.

Gr 2-4–The gold-threaded dress that makes her look like a Thai princess causes problems for Oy, now called Olivia, in her new American elementary school where classmates tease her for her different appearance and exclude her from their fourth-grade club. An easy-to-read, believable account of school meanness and an immigrant family's struggle to function in a very different culture.

STUVE-BODEEN, Stephanie. Babu's Song. illus. by Aaron Boyd. Lee & Low. 2003. RTE $16.95. ISBN 1-58430-058-2.

PreS-Gr 3–In this gentle story set in Tanzania, Bernardi longs to go to school and play soccer. Instead, he helps sell the toys his mute grandfather makes out of scrap materials. When the youngster sells a toy he loves and gives the money to his grandfather instead of buying a coveted soccer ball, he is rewarded with his heart's desire. Watercolor illustrations clearly depict the setting and the love between the boy and his grandfather.

ANDREWS-GOEBEL, Nancy. The Pot That Juan Built.illus. by David Diaz.Lee & Low. 2002. RTE $16.95. ISBN 1-58430-038-8.

K-Gr 5–On facing pages, a reworking of a familiar nursery rhyme parallels a more complex account of the life and work of Juan Quezada, a pottery maker who revived the traditional craft of the Casas Grandes Indians, and turned Mata Ortiz, Mexico into an art colony. While the cumulative rhyme works for younger children, the accompanying explanation of the process makes the book useful for older readers interested in art or culture. Vibrant computer illustrations highlight the colors and patterns of the area. Video and audio versions available from Weston Woods.

KRULL, Kathleen. Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez. illus. by Yuyi Morales. Harcourt. 2003. RTE $17. ISBN 0-15-201437-3.

Gr 1-4–After economic hardship forced his family to leave their home and labor as migrant workers, Chavez learned firsthand the pain of that life. Morales's stunning paintings add emotional impact to this picture-book biography, which focuses on the activist's early life and first successful nonviolent protest, a 340-mile march that was part of a grape-pickers' strike.

RUMFORD, James. Sequoyah: the Cherokee Man Who Gave His People Writing tr. by Anna Sixkiller Huckaby.illus. by author. Houghton. 2004. Tr $16. ISBN 0-618-36947-3.

Gr 2-4–Sequoia trees stand tall, a fitting monument to the crippled metalworker for whom they were named, who in the early 19th century invented a syllabic alphabet for the spoken Cherokee language. That alphabet was adapted for print and is still used today. This bilingual picture-book biography is illustrated in ink, watercolor, pastel, and pencil on paper over wood, with echoes of Japanese prints, and the translation was done by a renowned Cherokee storyteller.

STANLEY, Diane. Saladin: Noble Prince of Islam. illus. by author. HarperCollins. 2002. Tr $16.99. ISBN 0-688-17135-4; PLB $18.89. ISBN 0-688-17136-2.

Gr 3-7–Saladin, a model king for any age, led the Muslim world from 1185 to 1193, retaking Jerusalem and letting most of its inhabitants go free, and holding off England's King Richard and the armies of the Third Crusade until they withdrew in 1192. Stanley illustrates this picture-book biography in the style of Islamic art and provides quick summaries of the events of the preceding and following crusades, offering a fresh view of a conflict that still reverberates today.

Fiction

ALVAREZ, Julia. Before We Were Free. Knopf. 2002. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-375-81544-9; PLB $17.99. ISBN 0-375-91544-3.

Gr 5-8–Twelve-year-old Anita de la Torres's physical maturation is matched by an increasing social awareness, not only of the boys around her but also of the mounting danger to her family, active opponents of the Dominican dictator, Trujillo. His assassination in 1960 leads to a final splintering and dispersal of Anita's once-flourishing extended family. A rich coming-of-age story reminiscent of Anne Frank's and similarly compelling, told in a convincing first-person voice by a believable and sympathetic character. Audio version available from Listening Library.

CLINTON, Cathryn. A Stone in My Hand. Candlewick. 2002. RTE $15.99. ISBN 0-7636-1388-6.

Gr 5-8–After her father vanishes, presumably killed in one of the many Islamic jihad bombings in 1988, 11-year-old Malaak takes refuge on the roof of her Gaza Strip home. Retreating into silence and feeding a pigeon that she wishes could fly her away from her family's troubles, she fears for her brother who throws stones at the Israeli soldiers. This is a moving and convincing portrayal of boys drawn to the violence that seems the only way out of their world and the effect of that violence on their families.

ELLIS, Deborah. Parvana's Journey.Groundwood. 2002. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-88899-514-8; pap. $5.95. ISBN 0-88899-519-9.

Gr 5-8–After her father dies, 13-year-old Parvana, disguised as a boy, wanders alone through war-torn Afghanistan. As she searches for her mother and siblings who disappeared in the tumult of the Taliban takeover of Mazer-e-Sharif, Parvana forms a new family with abandoned children she meets along the way. An unforgettable read, this is a grim and personalized picture of the effects of war. A sequel to The Breadwinner (Groundwood, 2001), it stands alone.

FAMA, Elizabeth. Overboard Cricket. 2002. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-8126-2652-4.

Gr 5-8–Running away from her expatriate parents and her unhappy life in Banda Aceh, on the northern tip of Indonesia, 14-year-old Emily Slake takes an overloaded ferry that sinks, leaving her adrift in the Indian Ocean where her bond with a small Muslim boy helps her survive. A crackerjack survival story with thoughts on religious philosophy and details about living in Indonesia woven in.

HO, Minfong. The Stone Goddess. Scholastic. 2003. Tr $16.95. ISBN 0-439-38197-5.

Gr 5-8–An aspiring classical dancer, 12-year-old Nakri is forced by the Khmer Rouge to leave Phnom Penh on a nightmare journey that leads from her home to her grandparents' village, to years in a youth labor camp, months in a refugee camp, and, finally, resettlement with what remains of her family in the United States. As deliberately paced as classical dance and full of detail, including references to the mythology pictured at Angkor Wat.

NAIDOO, Beverley. Out of Bounds: Seven Stories of Conflict and Hope. HarperCollins. 2003. Tr $16.99. ISBN 0-06-050799-3; PLB $17.89. ISBN 0-06-050800-0.

Gr 6 Up–Seven short stories set in South Africa between 1948 and 2000 focus on individual experiences, white, black, and colored, and chronicle the stiffening and eventual collapse of apartheid. The parallels between the South African system and our own legal segregation up to the 1960s are obvious, and Naidoo makes readers appreciate the way in which the political system was changed without a civil war or vengeful retaliation.

RYAN, Pam Muñoz. Becoming Naomi León. Scholastic. 2004. Tr $16.95. ISBN 0-439-26969-5.

Gr 4-7–When fifth grader Naomi Outlaw's mother reappears in her life and threatens to take her away from her little brother and the great-grandmother with whom she has lived almost all her life, her great-grandmother takes her to Mexico to reconnect with her father and a world of craftsmen who, like Naomi, love to carve. Themes of child abuse and physical handicaps are handled smoothly and with humor in this beautifully written story. Audio version available from Listening Library.

WILLIAMS-GARCIA, Rita. No Laughter Here. HarperCollins. 2004. Tr $15.99. ISBN 0-688-16247-9; PLB $16.89. ISBN 0-688-16248-7.

Gr 4-9–Ten-year-old Akilah struggles to understand why her best friend, Victoria, has returned from a summer in Nigeria changed and silent. When Victoria reveals the cause, Akilah wonders how societies could mark a woman's coming of age so differently. In this exceptional story of female circumcision, the author makes an effort to present the traditional viewpoint, but her horror comes through in the reactions of Akilah's mother, a child protective services worker.

ARMSTRONG, Jennifer, ed. Shattered: Stories of Children and War. Knopf. 2002. Tr $15.99. ISBN 0-375-81112-5; pap. $5.99. ISBN 0-440-23765-3.

Gr 5-9–Twelve short stories, mostly by well-known authors of fiction for young readers, describe the shattering effect of war on children. The historical and geographical range of this collection is impressive, with civil wars, world wars, the war on Communism, and recent conflicts in the Near East and Afghanistan. Particularly interesting is the variety of viewpoints presented, including conscientious objection and a pair of youngsters for whom war provides the luxury of regular food and a safe place to sleep.

KURTZ, Jane, ed. Memories of Sun: Stories of Africa and America.Greenwillow. 2004. Tr $15.99. ISBN 0-06-051050-1; PLB $16.89. ISBN 0-06-051051-X.

Gr 5-10–This nicely balanced collection of 12 short stories and 3 poems explores the connections between Africa and the United States through portrayals of Africans in Africa, Americans in Africa, and Africans in America with several speaking to the challenge of moving between cultures. The authors range from well-known to little-known voices from the United States and African countries north and south of the equator.

NYE, Naomi Shihab. 19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East. HarperCollins. 2002. Tr $16.95. ISBN 0-06-009765-5; PLB $16.89. ISBN 0-06-009765-5; pap. $6.99. ISBN 0-06-050404-8.

Gr 6 Up–In this collection of poetry, half appearing first here, half previously published in other collections for adults, Nye reflects on the Middle East and on her particular situation as an Arab American. Gathered together as a response to 9/11, most of these carefully crafted, moving poems focus on small things in the daily lives of Arabs, making that culture more accessible to the American reader.

Fiction

ADICHIE, Chimamanda Ngozi. Purple Hibiscus: A Novel. Algonquin. 2003. Tr $23.95. ISBN 1-56512-387-5.

Gr 9 Up–Kambili, 15, and her brother Jaja live a privileged life thanks to their father, a wealthy and devoutly Christian businessman, who at home has another, more sinister side. His abuse is gradually revealed and is part of a pattern of control, mirrored in the autocratic government that the man, also a newspaper publisher, stands against. While this first novel by a Nigerian now living in the U.S. emphasizes the corruption of the politics of that country, it is filled with cultural details as well as universal coming-of-age concerns.

COFER, Judith Ortiz. The Meaning of Consuelo Farrar. 2002. Tr $20. ISBN 0-374-20509-4.

Gr 10 Up–As her family copes with the changes in 1950s Puerto Rican culture, Consuelo's family and friends change too: her favorite cousin reveals his homosexuality, her sister descends into schizophrenia, and emigration seems the only way Consuelo can find her own identity. A wonderful book for teaching and discussion, this is a literary delight for its language, character development, and thematic treatment of the losses in Consuelo's life.

HIDIER, Tanuja Desai. Born Confused.Scholastic. 2002. Tr $16.95. ISBN 0-439-35762-4; pap. $7.99. ISBN 0-439-51011-2.

Gr 9 Up–Seventeen-year-old photographer Dimple Lala struggles to find a balance between her Indian and American identities, and to deal with her changing feelings about Karsh, the "suitable boy" her parents have found for her but who seems to be in love with her beautiful, blonde best friend. This is a Technicolor picture of an immigrant teen's cultural struggle. It's loud and rhythmic, sensual and vibrant, reflecting both Indian culture and today's teen world.

PLACIDE, Jaïra. Fresh Girl. Dell. 2002. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-385-32753-6.

Gr 8 Up–Mardi's sunlit childhood in Haiti disappeared in the violence that forced President Aristide and thousands of other Haitians, including members of her own family, into exile. It takes a long time for the 14-year-old to admit to her family in Brooklyn the nature of her traumatic escape, so that she can finally put her past behind her and begin to make her way in a new world.

SÁENZ, Benjamin Alire. Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood. Cinco Puntos. 2004. Tr $16.95. ISBN 0-938317-81-4.

Gr 8 Up–Growing up in a barrio in small-town New Mexico, Sammy Santos experiences a series of losses: his mother to illness; his girlfriend to her father's murderous anger; high school friends to Vietnam, drugs, and exile; and all of his plans and dreams to the accidents of life. Somehow, he survives the '60s with his sense of self and ability to love intact. An exceptional coming-of-age story with a strong father-son relationship.

STEIN, Tammar. Light Years. Knopf. 2005. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-375-83023-5; PLB $17.99. ISBN 0-375-93023-X.

Gr 9 Up–Haunted by the death of her boyfriend who dies in a suicide bombing that she feels was her fault, Maya leaves her native Israel and struggles through a year at the University of Virginia, missing home and her family and desperately, but unsuccessfully, trying to avoid connecting with the people around her, especially a young teaching assistant. This book offers an interesting view of Americans from a foreign perspective as well as a universal picture of a survivor's guilty feelings.

THÚY, Lê Thi Diem. The Gangster We Are All Looking For: A Novel. Knopf. 2003. Tr $18. ISBN 0-375-40018-4; pap. $11.95. ISBN 0-375-70002-1.

Gr 9 Up–In fragments of memory, a Vietnamese girl recalls her life before and after immigration to San Diego, after the war that destroyed her parents' old way of life and left them stranded like fish out of water in a new world. This thinly disguised memoir features beautifully crafted prose and an accessible and engaging look at the immigrant experience.

LEKUTON, Joseph Lemasolai. Facing the Lion: Growing up Maasai on the African Savanna. National Geographic. 2003. RTE $15.95. ISBN 0-7922-5125-3; PLB $23.90. ISBN 0-7922-8328-7.

Gr 8 Up–The youngest son in a family of cattle herders in northern Kenya, Joseph was sent to boarding schools, and eventually to the United States. However, he never lost touch with his tribal roots, and the personality that carried him across vast cultural boundaries shines through in this interesting memoir.

SATRAPI, Marjane. Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood. illus. by author. Pantheon. 2003. Tr $17.95. ISBN 0-375-42230-7.

Gr 8 Up–Satrapi, great-granddaughter of an emperor and daughter of Marxist revolutionaries, uses a graphic-novel format to illustrate her childhood in Iran during the 1980s. The black-and-white drawings are well done, and the political situation is described clearly, though through a child's eyes. A sequel, Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return, was published in 2004.