Theme: Hope

Ana’s Story: A Journey Of Hope

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

Ana’s story begins the day she is born with HIV, transmitted from her mother, who dies just a few years later. From then on, Ana’s childhood becomes a blur of secrets—about her illness, her family, and the abuse she endures. Shuffled from home to home, Ana rarely finds safety or acceptance. But after she falls [...]

Descriptors: Latin America, Realistic Fiction, Young Adult (ages 14-18) » Other Themes: , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

A young boy unites with thousands of other orphaned boys to walk to safety in a refugee camp in another country, after war destroys their villages in southern Sudan. Based on true events. Awards: Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Books

Descriptors: Intermediate (ages 9-14), Realistic Fiction, Sudan » Other Themes: , , , , , » 1 Comment

A Song for Cambodia

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

The true story of Arn Chorn-Pond, Cambodian American musician and human rights activist, who as a young boy survived Khmer Rouge work camps by learning to play a musical instrument.

Descriptors: Biography, Cambodia, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Picture Book » Other Themes: , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Kaito’s Cloth

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

With the winter days approaching, young Kaito journeys to the Mountain of Dreams to watch her butterflies soar one last time. However, when she reaches her destination after an arduous three-day trek, she is too late. Her butterflies have died. “Weep no more,” says the Lord of Flight, creator of all butterflies. “Only the wings [...]

Descriptors: Australia, Fantasy, Picture Book, Primary (ages 6-9) » Other Themes: , , , , , » Leave a comment

A Handful of Seeds

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

One sad day, Grandmother died. “You cannot stay here,” said the man who owned the land. “I have a family ready to move in.” Young Concepcion has no choice but to move to the [barrio] of the nearby city. There she meets children who, in order to survive, must steal the good they eat. But [...]

Descriptors: Latin America, Primary (ages 6-9), Realistic Fiction » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Isabel’s House of Butterflies

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

Outside her home in Michoacan, Mexico, grows eight-year-old Isabel’s greatest treasure: an oyamel tree. Every autumn, a miracle happens-for Isabel’s tree is the wintering place for thousands upon thousands of monarch butterflies that migrate from the north. When they flutter down to roost, they transform Isabel’s tree into La casa de las mariposas-The House of [...]

Descriptors: Americas, Mexico, Picture Book, Primary (ages 6-9), Realistic Fiction » Other Themes: , , , , , , , » 1 Comment

Nilo and the Tortoise (Dinofours)

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean, near the Equator, lie the, Galapagos Islands- a tropical haven for sea lion, giants tortoises, and colorful birds. Nilo has visited these islands many times with his father. But when his father’s boat break down, the stranded boy encounters these amazing animals firsthand in an adventure he never [...]

Descriptors: Ecudor, Latin America, Primary (ages 6-9), Realistic Fiction » Other Themes: , , , , , » Leave a comment

Freedom Child of the Sea

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

A young man, swimming off the shore of a Caribbean island, is saved from drowning by a mysterious boy who appears from the depths. His body is scarred, yet his face is beautiful, and he leaps and swims as joyously as the dolphins. When the young man tells this to a passing stranger, he in [...]

Descriptors: Caribbean, Fantasy, Picture Book, Primary (ages 6-9) » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Teenage Refugees from Haiti Speak Out (In Their Own Voices)

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

These books begin with historical overviews of Haiti, including the reasons for recent political unrest. The first-person narratives of young refugees follow. All of the teens tell why they left their native countries, how they made their journeys, their experiences and difficulties in North America, and if they plan to return to their homelands. The [...]

Descriptors: Americas, Caribbean, Haiti, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Nonfiction » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , » Leave a comment

Elena’s Serenade (Americas Award For Children’s And Young Adult Literature. Commended (Awards)

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

Who ever heard of a girl glassblower?In Mexico, where the sun is called el sol and the moon is called la luna, a little girl called Elena wants to blow into a long pipe…and make bottles appear, like magic.But girls can’t be glassblowers. Or can they?Join Elena on her fantastic journey to Monterrey — home [...]

Descriptors: Fantasy, Mexico, Primary (ages 6-9) » Other Themes: , , , , , , , , » 2 Comments