Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Liberty’s Journey
Illustrator: Richard Egielski
Picture Book
For ages 6 to 9
Hyperion, 2004 ISBN: 978-0786818761
One day Lady Liberty decides that she wants to go and see the people who once waved at her when they arrived in America; she wants to see the places they went to. In short, she wants to see America "from sea to shining sea." Now, this is not an easy proposition when you are as big as Lady Liberty is, so she steps off her island at dawn, carefully picking her way through New York City in the early hours.
Lady Liberty sees all kinds of wonderful things as she crosses the country. She sees farms and cattle ranches, deserts and great cities. She also meets children, many of whose grandparents arrived through New York harbour and saw Lady Liberty as they arrived. She discovers that she is much loved, and that the people of New York miss her and want her back.
This marvellously imaginative picture book with its rich and melodious rhyming poetry and its striking illustrations will help children see that Lady Liberty is much more than just a statue. They will discover that she is a symbol for something very big and very important and for many Americans she was their first glimpse of their new homeland.
