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Their Great Gift: Courage, Sacrifice, and Hope in a New Land
by John Coy (Author) and Wing Young Huie (Illustrator)

With lyrical text and thought-provoking photography, Their Great Gift explores the experiences of immigrants in the twenty-first century, focusing on the lives of children. Images of families who came to the United States from many different parts of the world celebrate the diversity of our country and contain a vision of hope for the future.

#kidlit Writing Lesson: the small details

The book begins:

My family came here from far away . . .

TURN THE PAGE

because they dreamed of more.

This story is told in the first person voice with clear, spare, lyrical language. Most immigration stories are told from a single point of view, but this one is not. On each book spread are multiple photographs of immigrant families who came to the United States from all around the world.

How was this accomplished? The author and the photographer worked together to create this book. In the back matter the author writes:

I wrote text that was revised many times as we decided on pictures. While each family’s arrival story is unique, I wanted to focus on the overarching connection between immigrants–and between us all.

BONUS! Read an interview with the author and the photographer

Snippet: “This was the first time I’d ever worked directly with the artist.”