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The Immigrant Experience: Picture Books

By Skokie Staff Youth Services

These picture books highlight the experiences of immigrants and refugees.

  • I Is for Immigrants

    2021 by Alko, Selina

    What do African dance, samosas, and Japanese gardens have in common? They are all gifts the United States received from immigrants: the vibrant, multifaceted people who share their heritage and traditions to enrich the fabric of our daily lives. This joyful ABC journey is a celebration of immigrants: our neighbors, our friends.

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  • Where Butterflies Fill the Sky: A Story of Immigration, Family, and Finding Home

    2022 by Marwan, Zahra

    The true story of the author’s immigration from Kuwait to the United States. When Zahra is forced to leave her home, a place where the sky is filled with butterflies, she wonders about the people she’s left behind and if she’ll ever feel at home again.

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  • The Home We Make

    2024 by Khwaja, Maham

    After violence erupts in their homeland, a young Muslim girl and her family are forced to flee. They escape on foot, travel by boat, and finally resettle in a safe place where now they must find a way to rebuild a sense of home.

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  • Areli Is a Dreamer: A True Story

    2021 by Morales, Areli

    When Areli Morales was in kindergarten her parents sent for her, and she moved from her quiet town in Mexico to noisy New York City. Areli struggles with English and classmates that call her illegal but in time America becomes her home and the place Areli can pursue her dreams.

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  • What Is a Refugee?

    2019 by Gravel, Elise

    “A refugee is a person, just like you and me.” This is an accessible and affirming introduction to the refugee experience full of bold graphic illustrations and answers to questions like: Who are refugees? Why are they called that word? Why do they need to leave their country? Why are they sometimes not welcome in their new country?

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  • Kende! Kende! Kende!

    2024 by Cappy, Kirsten

    When fighting nears their village, Lolie and her family are forced to flee their home for a refugee camp. After years spent at the camp, the family is chosen for resettlement in North America. Once again Lolie and her family journey into the unknown. Written in both French and English with action words in Lingala.

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  • I'm an Immigrant Too!

    2018 by Fox, Mem

    Illustrations and simple, rhyming text reveal how all our lives are enriched by the vibrant cultural diversity immigrants bring to their new communities.

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  • A Thousand White Butterflies

    2021 by Betancourt-Perez, Jessica

    Isabella has just arrived from warm green Colombia to find that her first day of school in the United States is cancelled because of snow. She notices a girl playing outside in the cold, and despite their language barrier the two quickly become friends through the power of laughter and play.

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  • Home Is in Between

    2021 by Perkins, Mitali

    Shanti has just moved to the United States, where she is learning to navigate between her two worlds, her family’s Bengali traditions and her new country’s culture. She remembers her village in India and watches Bollywood movies at home, but she’s also exploring her new town and watching Hollywood movies with her new friends. Sometimes home doesn’t have to only mean one thing.

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  • Someone New

    2018 by O'Brien, Anne Sibley

    Meet three students who welcome recent immigrants to their school and country. A companion to “I’m New Here,” which is told from the perspective of the three recent newcomers.

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  • Something Happened to My Dad: A Story About Immigration and Family Separation

    2022 by Hazzard, Ann

    Carmen and her family feel the love and support of their community after her father is detained for being an undocumented immigrant from Mexico.

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  • Maribel's Year

    2023 by Sterling, Michelle

    Maribel might be 8,000 miles away from the Philippines, where her Papa lives, but she never forgets him. Maribel sees her Papa everywhere in her new life and waits for the day they are reunited.

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