In this moving and timely story, a young child describes what it is like to be a migrant as she and her father travel north toward the US border.
Starred review from August 31, 2015
Hope and hardship coexist in this haunting look at refugees fleeing home in hopes of a safer, more secure life. While strongly suggestive of Mexico, the setting is never mentioned explicitly, nor are the reasons why the young narrator and her father are traveling. For the girl, counting—chickens on the side of the road, people encamped by train tracks—offers a stability that her day-to-day life cannot; numbers are constant, even when you’re always on the move. On every step of their journey, which includes fording a muddy river on rafts built on rubber tires and riding atop a rusted-out train, they are joined by a narrow-eyed coyote, a visual metaphor for those who smuggle migrants and refugees across borders, not always with good intentions. Colored in drab browns and blues, Yockteng’s illustrations emphasize the closeness between father and daughter without downplaying the dangers they face. Buitrago and Yockteng (who previously collaborated on Jimmy the Greatest!) leave the family’s story open-ended, powerfully underscoring the idea that there are few certainties in the life of a refugee. Ages 4–7.
Starred review from September 1, 2015
"When we travel, I count what we see," this little girl tells readers. She counts hens, cows, "one little bored donkey," and a russet mutt that her father calls a chucho and that joins the two on the road. That one Spanish word and a sign for the frontera constitute some of the few textual clues to the pair's circumstances. Adult readers will see Latin American migrants, probably without papers to judge by the raft they ride across the river and the soldiers they flee. Children will see an adventure that's sometimes thrilling, sometimes boring, sometimes terrifying-how much will depend on how familiar readers are with this perilous trek, but even those from the coziest of homes will detect some. They ride atop boxcars, and they stop while Papa works to make money for the next leg of the journey. They are dark-skinned; their fellow migrants range from pale to dark. The only constants are the chucho, the girl's stuffed bunny, "the way people we meet on the road look at us," and the current of affection that runs between father and daughter. The story does not conclude; it simply ends with the companions "back on the road," now with the titular rabbits. Like the creators' previous book, Jimmy the Greatest (2012), it's a masterpiece of understatement. In leaving readers with much to wonder about, the book packs the most powerful of punches. (Picture book. 4-10)
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Starred review from July 1, 2015
K-Gr 3-A young girl and her father face challenges together as they move from place to place. They travel by foot and by train and are happy to catch a ride with passersby when they can. Sometimes their journey is delayed (or derailed) when they must stop because of soldiers or if father has to earn more money to continue along their way. Told entirely through the sensibility of the child, the narration informs readers that "the people who are taking us don't always take us where we are going." The young girl passes the time by counting the interesting items she sees such as animals, people, clouds, and stars. She is very curious about where they are headed, but never receives an answer to her query. Yet, she is content because she has her daddy and her two white rabbits. This simple, yet poignant picture book beautifully illustrates the life of one migrating family. Set in Central America or Mexico, it shows the arduous journey north to the United States in search of a better life. This book is a great tool for introducing immigration, and can be appreciated on many levels. The digitally created illustrations are detailed and full of expression, telling a story of love, struggle, and determination. VERDICT An important and timely picture book for every library collection.-Amy Shepherd, St. Anne's Episcopal School, Middleton, DE
Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
October 1, 2015
Grades K-2 The pace is fittingly slow in this quiet immigration story. Short sentences, interrupted by the silence of wordless two-page spreads, seem to match the steady tread of the girl and her father as they travel on foot, by raft, and atop trains, moving day and night through deserts and fields. Traveling, we quickly learn, is a euphemism for the journey of immigration, but it only thinly disguises the arduous nature of this pair's trek. Details in the illustrations belie the neutrality of the text. The girl amuses herself by counting things she sees along the way, and it seems this is a journey she has taken before. She does not know where they are going, and no one will tell her. Older readers will appreciate the allegory, and younger ones the simplicity of this spare immigration tale. The digital illustrations use saturated earth tones to render these anonymous people beautifully real. Though they have no names or a place to call home, there is no doubt that they count.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)
July 1, 2016
A girl and her father travel by foot, by raft, and by train. As they travel, the girl counts the things she sees: "I count the people who live by the train tracks." Originally published in Spanish, this quiet picture book highlights the experience of a child refugee or immigrant; Yockteng's contemplative graphic illustrations clearly depict the pain, frustration, and boredom of the journey.
(Copyright 2016 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)
Starred review from August 1, 2017
Grades K-2 *Starred Review* Here, in its original Spanish, is Buitrago's poignant story of an unnamed young girl and her father immigrating to the U.S. from Central America. To help pass time, the young girl counts everything she sees: Un burrito aburrido, y cincuenta pajaros en el cielo. But complexities lie beyond the numbers, as the girl also notes the number of homeless people living near the train tracks, and foregoes enumerating the soldiers because there are simply too many. Buitrago's narrative and Yockteng's illustrations give elementary-age readers an insight into the dangerous journey many make in hopes of finding better opportunities in the U.S. While the young girl counts what she sees, the muted digital illustrations key the reader into other events, such as the pair's experiences on the train and the dad counting their remaining money, which leads to their stopping to find temporary work. This beautiful, understated story is extremely important right now; it will resonate with many and open the eyes of children unfamiliar with the experience of immigration.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)