School Library Journal Starred Review (Fri Mar 01 00:00:00 CST 2013)

Gr 1-4 An Italian-American immigrant shares his childhood memories with his great-granddaughter. The twist of this tale is that his memories have been kept in a "diary" of saved objects that commemorate the important events of his life. As a poor child who could neither read nor write, this now-elderly gentleman found a unique way to preserve his memories by saving the objects in matchboxes. Among the many items were a box of sunflower seed shells that counted the days from Naples to New York, a fish bone to remember the long days the entire family had to work in the canneries, and a ticket stub from his first baseball game. The journey unfolds prompted by the child's curious questions. Her inquiries provoke the descriptive vignettes of an earlier time and yet frame the story through the eyes of a youngster of today. Ibatoulline's sepia-toned illustrations beautifully express this immigrant's tale from Italy to Ellis Island and the start of a new life. They also provide a wonderful contrast to the warm-colored illustrations that depict a loving, appreciative relationship between an elderly man and a young child. This lovingly crafted picture book tells an amazing story that is uniquely American. Through unsentimental, yet warm and touching dialogue, Fleischman successfully shares a powerful journey that captures the hardships, self-reliance, strength, and simple joys that characterized early immigrants. It provides an inspirational introduction to the immigration story that captures the humanity of the journey.— Carole Phillips, Greenacres Elementary School, Scarsdale, NY

Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews (Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

The story of one person's life is the very essence of history, transcending time, distance and generations. A little girl and her great-grandfather meet for the first time and attempt to get to know each other. The child is intrigued by the curiosities she sees in a collection of matchboxes. These matchboxes represent the memories of the old man's life, a tangible diary, undertaken as a substitute for the written form at a time in his life when he was illiterate. Bits and pieces contained within call forth events, emotions or people that were important in his life's journey, from his early childhood in Italy to the difficult voyage to America and the struggles of his immigrant family in the new world. An olive pit, a pen nib, a fish bone, a piece of coal and more tell of poverty, dreams and perseverance. Writing entirely in dialogue, Fleischman employs a natural and believable matter-of-fact tone that provides a fresh view of the immigrant experience, as the humble objects and their stories form the beginning of a loving bond between the little girl and her great-grandfather. Ibatoulline's illustrations, done in acrylic gouache, are extraordinarily detailed and expressive. Modern scenes appear in warm, amber-toned colors, while framed sepia vignettes depict past memories as if part of a family album. Captivating and powerful. (Picture book. 6-10)

Horn Book

An Italian immigrant tells his great-granddaughter the family's history by showing her his "diary"--the contents of the matchboxes that he collected before he could write. His storytelling is so captivating that it will probably escape readers' notice that the girl isn't much of a character. Realistic acrylic gouache paintings on mottled tan pages simulate photographs of an earlier time.

Starred Review ALA Booklist (Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2013)

Starred Review Small-scale objects tell a large-scale, European-coming-to-America story in this beautiful offering from two celebrated children's book creators. When a young girl meets her great grandfather, she asks him about his old collection of little matchboxes, and he explains that at her age he could not read and write. To remember his experiences, he kept symbolic things in matchboxes, starting with an olive pit that his mother gave him to suck on when he was hungry while growing up in Italy. Also in the boxes are reminders of his journey across the ocean in steerage, bones from the cannery where his family worked in the U.S., a tooth he lost when bullies threw rocks at him, a ticket for his first baseball game, and other things he kept to show his progress as he learned to read and rose to become a successful adult. The moving conversation is illustrated with Ibatoulline's finely detailed acrylic-and-gouache images, which appear first in sepia tones and then with glowing red accents. Along with Fleischman's lyrical, spare words, the body language depicted in the artwork captures the drama of the immigrant story, from heartbreaking partings and hard struggle to, finally, success. An excellent title for sharing and discussion, this will resonate with the many kids who will recognize how small, ordinary things can become treasures.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

The story of one person's life is the very essence of history, transcending time, distance and generations. A little girl and her great-grandfather meet for the first time and attempt to get to know each other. The child is intrigued by the curiosities she sees in a collection of matchboxes. These matchboxes represent the memories of the old man's life, a tangible diary, undertaken as a substitute for the written form at a time in his life when he was illiterate. Bits and pieces contained within call forth events, emotions or people that were important in his life's journey, from his early childhood in Italy to the difficult voyage to America and the struggles of his immigrant family in the new world. An olive pit, a pen nib, a fish bone, a piece of coal and more tell of poverty, dreams and perseverance. Writing entirely in dialogue, Fleischman employs a natural and believable matter-of-fact tone that provides a fresh view of the immigrant experience, as the humble objects and their stories form the beginning of a loving bond between the little girl and her great-grandfather. Ibatoulline's illustrations, done in acrylic gouache, are extraordinarily detailed and expressive. Modern scenes appear in warm, amber-toned colors, while framed sepia vignettes depict past memories as if part of a family album. Captivating and powerful. (Picture book. 6-10)