School Library Journal Starred Review

Gr 1-4-Hannah, a young Amish girl, her mother, and an adult friend take a buggy and bus from their farm home to Chicago. Diary entries detail the child's reactions to the sights while luminous double-page watercolors depict the city's wonders from the "L" and the shops to the fountains and the aquarium. The text, surrounded by a thin black frame, is placed to the right of the city scenes and above black line drawings of the young writer. Each new experience triggers a related scene from home; these wordless spreads alternate with the urban scenes. Thus, while the lakefront view from Hannah's hotel is breathtaking, the panorama that follows of the view from Aunt Clara's porch has charms all of its own. The city scenes are rendered in a slightly brighter palette and appear in rectangular frames. The memories of home are more muted, presented in soft, rounded shapes. Deep blue scenes of the early morning departure and the sunset homecoming cover the endpapers. The latter scene includes haystacks, connecting Hannah and readers to her experience with Monet's haystacks at the Chicago Art Institute. This title offers so much: a glimpse into Amish culture and Chicago treasures; a winsome main character and many sensitively depicted supporting personalities; a fresh, authentic voice; and a design perfectly melded to its subtle message. Share this one with groups and individuals-and plan extra time to savor.-Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

ALA Booklist

This picture book for older children begins on the book jacket as an Amish girl, Hannah, begins her birthday journey to Chicago by bidding good-bye to Aunt Clara and boarding a buggy that takes her, her mother, and her mother's friend Maggie to the bus station. Hannah's diary entries highlight each day's activities in the city, which are compared to everyday experiences on the farm. On Sunday, Hannah admires Chicago from a skyscraper's observation tower; a turn of the page reveals the panorama she's accustomed to seeing from Aunt Clara's porch. As Hannah likens the colorful clothing of city dwellers to the patterns and colors in an Amish quilt, Small shows a bridge crowded with pedestrians, followed by a double spread picturing Amish women seated around a table stitching. The robust colors of the city are countered by the subdued tones of the familiar Amish life Hannah recalls at each day's end. Children will enjoy glimpsing Hannah's routines through her reveries and sharing the excitement of her trip to Chicago in this vivid, respectful, and artfully presented contrast in cultures.

Horn Book

The Journey records a trip to Chicago for Amish Hannah. Double-page spreads set in Chicago, paired with entries from Hannah's diary, alternate with wordless spreads depicting the home that Hannah has left behind--Amish scenes both suggested by the diary entries and visually paralleling the preceding city scenes. The pictures effectively convey the idea that the way we see things depends on where we're coming from.

Kirkus Reviews

Young Hannah is visiting Chicago with her mother and her mother's friend, leaving their Amish farm for a week in the city. Hannah is delirious with joy at this birthday gift, and each night she writes in her diary about what she has seen. She wonders at the stores, and who buys all those things. She helps gentle a skittish carriage horse, recalling her pony at home. She revels in the huge buildings and the people "with all the colors of a quilt in their different clothes and faces." Hannah visits the library, a cathedral, the aquarium, and each place delights her and fills her with memories of something she has left behind. Small's art is in extraordinary harmony with the story: on each diary page, a box of text and a black and white sketch of Hannah in a right-hand panel faces a vibrant image of the city and the women in their Amish bonnets. Each is followed by a double-page wordless spread of what Hannah is recalling from her Amish community. For example, their sunlit boat ride under a bridge with its march of multihued pedestrians is followed by an image of Amish women of several generations working at a quilting frame. Hannah's straightforward voice limns a warm appreciation for urban bustle while longing for, and loving, her much different rural life, with its strong religious and familial ties. (Picture book. 7-10)