by Julia López-Robertson with Amanda Dunnigan & Rebecca Martin
University of South Carolina
In A Step from Heaven, An Na invites us on the Parks’ journey as a recently arrived Korean family who migrated to the United States (Mi Gook) seeking a better life. Young Ju, our seven year old protagonist, believes that Mi Gook is heaven, but is it? The family’s new life in the United States is full of contradiction and chaos; they desire to belong and fit in while still maintaining their Korean heritage, is this possible? As we continue to serve more immigrant children in our schools, how can we help them cross borders between life inside the home vs. life outside in the world?
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