Customer Reviews

One Green Apple

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Eve Bunting has done it again. This is a perfect book with a simple, exquisite story that does not preach or lecture, but reveals the heart of what it is like to be an immigrant child, with out English, on the first day of school in the U.S. That the protaganist is a Muslim child adds to its impact, and that it ends with warmth and hope is its power. Bravo!!

Eve Bunting portrays a warm look at the plight of one immigrant girl transitioning to an American classroom for the very first time. I read this book with second graders yesterday (who have a brand new student from Norway in their midst) and I think all of them felt compassion for their friend's situation. The illustrations are amazing and Ted Lewin has used his wife Betsy to portray the role of the teacher. This is truly a book that should not be missed.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book to any caretaker or teacher who wishes to introduce their young person to multicultural themes.

This book is especially worthy because of the Caldecott-winning illustrator. It authentically portrays what a Muslim's experience might be like as a newcomer to this country, which is not always too pretty. However, the book ends on a very positive note. "One Green Apple" is simply worth it.

A superb story of a little girl, Farah, and her migration abroad and how she is able to gain a grip on the transition through friendship at a school outing to an apple orchard. It is a nice story, especially for educators, attempting to deliver implicit lessons on caring, compassion, and simply taking care of your neighbors and being a decent human.

Easy to recommend.

A refreshing approach to the assimilation issues of a new immigrant. Honest, light-filled artwork, and simple sentences easily understood by the youngest reader. Touching, yet not designed to be. Practical storyline works for students of all ages.

Farah, a young Muslim girl, begins her story on her second day in a new school in a new country. She listens and nods but doesn't speak. So many things are strange to her, including the cloths and language. Her class is going on a field trip to an apple orchard where they will each pick an apple to be made into cider. When she puts a green apple into the cider press instead of a ripe red, one as her classmates have done, they symbolically protest. But the cider from all the apples they have mixed together is a beautiful metaphor for the benefits of intermingling different people. Farah begins to make friends. She even learns a new word "App-ell." Her simple story helps us understand the feelings of one of the many immigrant children striving to make their way on our American world. Tee Lewin's gorgeous full-page watercolors depict the apple picking adventure. This is a great picture book for early primary and ESL classrooms.

I wish I could give this book more than 5 stars. The story is simple yet so poignant, and the illustrations are magnificent.

We are preparing to adopt children from another country, and we found this book to be extremely helpful in showing our existing children (ages 4.5 and 6.5) what it would be like to suddenly find yourself in a country where you look different, dress differently, and don't speak the language. This is an amazing book because it really makes the children feel for the girl, to put themselves "in her shoes" and show them why tolerance and warmth and friendliness to others are so important. It is a great book for starting a discussion. I felt like my 6.5 year old really "got it" but even my 4.5 year old was able to understand the basics and to have a bit of a conversation about it. I think that generally it would be good for ages 5-10.

We got this from the library, but we may just have to buy it and add it to our bookshelf. Love it.

This is a beautiful story about a Muslim immigrant girl named Farah. Farah takes a field trip with her class to an apple orchard. When the children are instructed to choose one apple, Farah chooses a small green one that is different from all the others. The children then blend the apples into juice, and Farah hopes that someday she too will blend with the others as her apple did. Eve Bunting does a great job of letting you into the mind of an immigrant child as she describes the feelings of uncertainty Farah experiences while trying to interact with the children and learn their language. This book could be used to build classroom community and demonstrate to children that people of other cultures are not entirely different- they have many of the same thoughts and feelings, as Farah did in the book, and although she could not communicate with words, Farah understood her peers. This would be a great addition to any classroom library.

The story is so realistic, it seems like it is based upon a true story. The message and theme is so universal that I am sure it could reach the heart of any student from any background. Bunting really touches upon what it would feel like as an immigrant coming to a new school through the thoughts of a young girl. The illustrations compliment the text and make the story come alive. I would recommend this book to any teacher or school personnel. It is great for teaching tolerance and helping students feel what it is like to be an immigrant in new surroundings.

Ted Lewin's gorgeous sun-drenched paintings and Eve Bunting's sensitive text immediately put the reader into another child's shoes in this touching picture storybook of a young Muslim immigrant. On a field trip to an apple orchard, Farah discovers there are lots of things that sound the same as they did back home, from dogs crunching their food to the ripple of friendly laughter.

Teachers/Librarians: makes a great read-a-loud for any level: Kindergarten - 6th grade.