My Two Worlds

Hazel Rochman

The two bright jacket photographs show eight-year-old Kirsy Rodriguez smiling in the snow in New York City and basking in the sun in the Dominican Republic: this upbeat, colorful photo-essay celebrates that both worlds are a part of her. Kirsy is the first of her family born in the U.S., and they all speak "Spanish at home and English whenever we need to." As school ends in New York, she can't wait to fly with her big sister to spend Christmas with her grandparents in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. The change is dramatic: the moment she arrives, she pulls off her coat in the heat ("Get me out of these clothes"). Then she's back immersed in the close community she remembers. She's a visitor but not a tourist. Most of the book is about the fun in Puerto Plata--family, friends, foods, beach, parties, music--but there's also a double-page spread showing the local children working hard, bringing home wood and water. The trip is framed by Kirsy's leaving New York and then the joyful return to parents, city, and beautiful snow. Without the intensity of Allen Say's "Grandfather's Journey" , this is a cheerful story of how immigrants continue to come and go "back home."