Sofie and the City by Karima Grant
Illustrated by Janet Montecalvo.32 p., Boyds, 2006. When you move to a new country, you miss the beauty and friendliness of home. Such is the case for Sofie, who has moved to a large U.S. city (perhaps New York) with her parents from Senegal. In phone conversations with her grandmother, Mame, Sofie describes her experience of her new home as ugly and isolating. She tells Mame that she wants to return to Senegal. Her wise Mame tells her, "before you come back, you will just have to make it pretty." Beauty and friendship arrive together, in the form of a neighbor girl named Kenya who colors on the sidewalk with chalk. When Sofie joins Kenya in coloring, she draws her first home and her grandmother. This allows her to connect her old and new homes, and with a new friend, her new home doesn't seem so ugly any more. With its colorful illustrations, this story shows children important ways to feel at home in a new country. Ages 3-7
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