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Pelaez, José , McGee, Lynn

Starting Over in Sunset Park

40 pp. | Tilbury | March, 2021 | Trade ISBN 978-0-88448-844-6 $17.95 | Ebook ISBN 978-0-88448-846-0 $17.95
(2) K-3 Illustrated by Bianca Diaz. Arriving in the U.S. from the Dominican Republic, "homesick and a little afraid," a young girl wonders whether her new life in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, could ever be beautiful. At first, she and her mother stay with family, but after Mama gets a job at a factory making holiday decorations, the two find an apartment and begin to make their own way. It takes time, and it's not always easy: frustrated at not being able to keep up in English at school, the girl lashes out at her teacher; but Mrs. Kowalski, herself an immigrant from Poland, understands. At a conference with Mama, who gently insists on speaking English, the girl feels supported in learning a new language. Mama helps, too, along with upstairs neighbor Mr. Palmieri, who introduces them to cat-sitting ("People pay you for that?" asks Mama). Soon their cozy apartment becomes a temporary home for a comical assortment of cats, and as everyone settles in, the girl finds that "this strange new place began to feel a little magical." Diaz renders Sunset Park in culturally specific detail and with a rainbow of tropical colors; amid a variety of page layouts, a muted double-page spread of Central Park in the snow stands out beautifully. Meanwhile, Pelaez and McGee's text is compassionate and earnest; occasional Spanish sentences are translated in parentheses throughout. Back matter includes a list of resources for immigrants and those who want to learn more about immigration.
Reviewer: Anamaría Anderson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

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