The Two Brothers (Vermont Folklife Center Children's Book Series) [Hardcover]

William Jaspersohn (Author), Michael A. Donato (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Vermont Folklife Center Children's Book Series

Award-winning author William Jaspersohn brings American history alive in a moving immigrant tale. The story retells the amazing, true saga of the Eurich brothers from Prussia, who arrive five years apart in America in the 1880s and who miraculously end up on neighboring farms in central Vermont. An activity page offers suggestions to young readers about ways to explore their own family heritage. Ages 6-10.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Vermont history comes alive via this modest tale of two immigrant brothers. In the 1880s, Heinrich leaves the poverty of his Prussian home to seek his fortune in America. He promises to send for his younger brother, Friedrich, and their mother as soon as he establishes himself: "Until then, expect not a word from me," he adds, puzzlingly. After a long and difficult ocean voyage to New York, he is renamed Henry by an immigration officer and directed to a job as a farmhand in Vermont. He quickly adapts and grows to love his new home. Meanwhile, back in Prussia, Heinrich's mother dies and a grief-stricken Friedrich decides to follow in his brother's footsteps. Fred (as Friedrich is Americanized) ends up working on a Vermont farm, tooAfor 15 months he lives a mile away from Henry before the two are reunited by chance. Jaspersohn's (How the Forest Grew) straightforward text is drawn from actual family archives. A brief endnote containing this factual information gives the story added resonance. Donato (Squanto and the First Thanksgiving) renders the events in stylized pastels featuring powerful shapes and dark, dramatic hues. One quibble: the characters' faces occasionally look simian. Tips to help readers create a family history are included. Ages 6-10. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3-Basing his tale on a true story found in the archives of the Vermont Folklife Center, the author tells of the Eurich brothers, who came from Prussia to the United States in the 1880s. Heinrich, the older, told his mother and brother Friedrich they would not hear from him until he had found steady work in America and could afford to bring them over. He found employment on a Vermont farm, but before he could send for his family, his mother died and Friedrich set out on his own. Coincidentally, he followed his brother's footsteps to Vermont and settled on an adjacent farm. The two were reunited while mending fences. Oil paintings, with a palette heavy in deep blues, greens, and bright white accents, recall Picasso's early works. Arranged in a variety of handsome layouts, they reinforce the dignified, straightforward text. A worthy addition to immigration literature.
Diane S. Marton, Arlington County Library, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Vermont Folklife Center; 1st edition (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0916718166
• ISBN-13: 978-0916718169
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 10.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #897,696 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Immigrant Story, September 20, 2000

By 

J.B. McKinley (Vermont) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Two Brothers (Vermont Folklife Center Children's Book Series) (Hardcover)

The Two Brothers New Children's Book Rockets Series to Prominence by J.B. McKinley

William Jaspersohn, Vermont author, has scored a 10 on whatever scale you choose to rate a children's book. His latest title, The Two Brothers, is a tale of immigration to Vermont and of reunion. It is an evocative and moving story that differs from the experience of so many who came to America, only in its surprise ending. The action moves along fast enough to capture and keep the attention of youngsters and the vocabulary does not talk down to anyone. Jaspersohn gives us clues to the casualness of immigration officials, sketches the weather and seasons of Vermont, and lets the reader glimpse the wonder of a new life in a new country - where hard work is still a constant, but anything can, and does, happen. As you read the book to your child, you will toss on the "rough and cruel" sea crossing; you can easily imagine the work on the Tucker Hill Farm - sugaring, plowing, cutting firewood and, finally fence building. It is this last activity in springtime, years after "Henry" immigrates, that brings us to the final happy meeting of brothers. But it is the unique format of The Family Heritage Series that tells us the two brothers actually lived and were the forebears of Vermont's Commissioner of Agriculture. The story is based on archives kept at the Vermont Folklife Center, in Middlebury. The idea for the series, which Jaspersohn's instant classic will undoubtedly catapult into importance in the world of children's literature, was first conceived about five years ago by Jane Beck, folklorist and director at the Folklife Center. She wanted to share the family stories collected and housed in Middlebury. "Family stories are tremendously important," she said. "Our best hope for the Family Heritage Series is that will not only bring to light some of the fascinating true stories that exist in families, but also serve as a catalyst for children to dig up - and value - their own family's stories." On the book's last page, children are urged to uncover family tales and are given easy, specific directions to become authors of their own family book. "It reminds us that everybody and every family has a story to tell," said Bill Jaspersohn. "The power of these kinds of stories is as great as the stories of Hollywood or the songs of...Britney Spears...they help all of us understand the American experience." The Two Brothers will be included on a soon to be published list of classic New England children's books compiled by Yankee Magazine. The book makes the top 40, with company such as Blueberries for Sal. "It's cool!" said Jaspersohn of making the list. The fact is, his book hadn't even officially been for sale by the time he made the list. "To be part of that kind of list is a big honor," admitted Jaspersohn. But what he likes most about his book is that "It's a form of giving power to kids." He believes including the last page of author and publisher instruction for kids is key. "We all have a hunger for the past." He believes we all instinctively feel the past holds lessons for us. But, the message is that books "don't drop out of the sky - they come from real people," said Jaspersohn. Actually, one could come from your child.

5.0 out of 5 stars Rutgers University Project on Economics and Children, September 30, 2008

By 

Yana V. Rodgers "econkids.rutgers.edu" (New Brunswick, NJ) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Two Brothers (Vermont Folklife Center Children's Book Series) (Hardcover)

A mother and her two sons, Heinrich and Friedrich, lived a difficult life of poverty and harsh political rule in Prussia. Heinrich decided to use spend all his savings to travel to America so he could find a better way of life. After promising to send money from America to his mother and younger brother so they could join him later, Heinrich embarked on a long, rough voyage across the ocean to New York. His fortunes changed for the better when the immigration official gave him a lead on a job opening in Vermont, a dollar for dinner, and a train ticket. Ironically, and unbeknownst to Heinrich, Friedrich traveled a very similar journey from Prussia to Vermont just a short while later after their mother died. How would the two brothers be reunited when neither knew of the other's whereabouts?

The Two Brothers, based on a true story, offers readers an entertaining story about immigration to the United States in the late 1800s. Not only does the book incorporate some important economics concepts related to jobs and poverty, but it also provides readers with a useful reminder of the challenges that people faced in communicating long distance when they did not have the technology that we have today.