The Arrival by Shaun Tan

The Arrival by Shaun Tan, 2006, New York; Arthur A. Levine Books (9780439895293)

Awards: 35th Galley Club Book of the Year Award

Author/Illustrator Website: http://www.shauntan.net

Media Used:pencil on paper

Annotation:

A father leaves his family to make money in a new land.  When he finally finds a job, he sends the money back to his family.  Eventually, his family comes to join him, and they begin their new lives together.

Personal Reaction:

Parts of this story are confusing.  This graphic novel has absolutely no words.  I periodically had to re-read some pages to get a good grasp of what was going on.  There were weird creatures depicted in the book, and even stranger, his family arrived in what looked like a wooden outhouse carried by a balloon.  This graphic novel does depict the feelings of being away from your family and in a strange land, but it did so in a way that I am not used to.  There were many abstract concepts and ideas that did not have solid answers.

2009 Top Ten List

Curricular Connection: 8th grade history or high school US history (to get a better understanding of how immigrants feel)