Edith TarbescuCritiques

A sweet story of two young sisters traveling to New York from a Russian village by themselves. Their father, who moved to America first, bought them steamboat tickets and was meeting them in New York. The book shows a huge group of other immigrants from all over the world that traveled on the huge ship for two weeks. Then girls, along with everyone else, had to go through an extensive doctor check up before they were finally admitted to United States and their father was able to greet and welcome them to their new country. A reader can tell that the main character, 13-year-old Annushka, misses her sweet grandfather and grandmother, who she will never see again. Nice book to showcase a little glimpse into immigration stories.

This story is about two Jewish sisters who immigrate to America from Russia in the early twentieth century. It takes us on their long and exhausting journey on a crowded ship, through Ellis Island, and on to reuniting with their father.
This book does an excellent job of helping the reader visualize their journey, through both words and illustrations. Although there were moments when I experienced genuine emotion, like when they left their grandparents in Russia, it read somewhat like an informational nonfiction book at times. I also feel as though it ended so abruptly with no real conclusion.
Ultimately the books true message of the importance of family shines through to create an honest, heartfelt story of immigration.

I absolutely loved this book. One reason why I loved this book is because of the illustrations and how well they complimented the text. For example, on pages 6 and 7, the text says “I pressed my nose to the window, and the last thing I saw was the red scarf Grandma was waving.” The illustrations on those pages show two little girls looking out the window at their grandmother waving her red scarf. This combination of words and imagery create an emotional scene. Another reason why I loved this book is because the author does an amazing job of explaining a very challenging time in history in a way that young readers can understand. The language is very basic, yet it still captures the fears and obstacles that people during this time experienced. For example, on page 24, the author writes about the Annushka’s examination on Ellis Island, “Different doctors checked our heads and our ears; someone even pried my eyelids wide open.” While this was a very challenging point for immigrants, the author uses language that a reader can understand and relate to. The book has many different important messages that Tarbescu successfully expresses in her writing. One main idea is that family is important and that family should stick together and look out for one another. Another main idea is that family can stay connected through the traditions that their family has followed. This can be seen with the candlesticks that were given to the girls from their grandmother before they left for America.

"Annushka's Voyage" is a book based on true events which took place during the turn of the century. Annushka and her sister Tanya live in Russia with their grandparents. Their father is in America, trying to raise money for them to come live with him. The day arrives when they receive two tickets in the mail. Their grandma gives them the Sabbath candlesticks her mother gave her on her wedding day. Then the time for their journey comes, they first depart on a train, then they get on a ship that will bring them to New York.On their journey they face struggles of being along, cold and scared. Once they got separate from each other and started waving the Sabbath candles in the air to find one another. The two young girls are brave and look after each other. When they arrive, they are reunited with their father at last. Their father cooked a special dinner that night in celebration. Annushka says the Sabbath prayer and is praised by her father because she said it perfectly. "Annushka's Voyage" would be a very educational book to use in the classroom. It teaches about diversity, how important the Sabbath prayer and candles are to them. It teaches about history and immigration because these events really did happen. Many people left all that they knew to make a new life in America. In a classroom setting it would be good to discuss about moving somewhere else like Annushka and Tanya did.½

Two Russian sisters embark on a journey to unite with their father in New York. It touches slightly on the hardships immigrants had to endure on their voyage. I would incorporate this book into the class when covering immigration, or early American history. I would try to tie it in with other types of immigration. I would look into the time period, and find books on Hispanic, Asian, or other European immigration stories.

Summary: Many Russian Jews fled to America at the turn of the 20th century. This story follows two young sisters across the Atlantic and through Ellis Island to their father. The three of them start their new life in a new country with a special dinner and a prayer said with grandma’s Sabbath candlesticks between them.

Personal: I can’t imagine the courage it takes people to leave everything they know and own and come to a totally unknown country to start over. This story in particular has characters that are very young making the journey on their own. It is those people who make America what it is.

Classroom Extensions:
Social Studies: Ellis Island witnessed people of all nationalities coming through its’ doors. It is from those nationalities that America is made. See if students can find out from their families what nationalities they may have.
History: The late 1800’s and turn of the century seen an influx of immigrants into America. This story can help younger children picture what it might have been like for some of them.

The Sabbath candlesticks given to them by their grandmother when they leave Russia help two sisters make it safely to their father in New York (from the summary).