FPT>S1b-45

Through compelling reminiscences of

his grandfather’s life in America and
Japan, Allen Say delivers a poignant
account of his family’s unique cross-
cultural experience. He warmly con-
veys his own love for his two countries
and describes the strong and constant
desire to be in both places at once:
When in one country, he invariably
misses the other. His grandfather, he
tells us, would understand.
Illustrated with exquisite paintings,
intimate and memorable, Grandfather's
Journey is Allen Say’s most personal
and remarkable picture yet of the
bridging of two cultures.

Jacket art © 1993 by Allen Say

 H D R A W’
NTT

Grandfather's Journey
WRT ENeAND TLEUS TRATEDSBY

ALLEN SAY

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Houghton Mifflin Company
Boston 1993 npeeme ata.d ARIA
uo 6 ie Lata we eM

SAN BRUNO PUBLIC LIBRARY

 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Say, Allen.
Grandfather's journey / Allen Say.
p- cm.
Summary: A Japanese American man recounts his grandfather’s
journey to America which he later also undertakes, and the feelings
of being torn by a love for two different countries.
ISBN 0-395-57035-2
{1. Grandfathers—Fiction. 2. Voyages and travels— Fiction.
3. Homesickness—Fiction. 4. Japan—Fiction. 5. United States—
Description and travel—Fiction. 6. Japanese Americans— Fiction.]}
Letatle,
PZ7.S2744Gr 1993 93-18836
{E}—dc20 CIP
AC

Copyright © 1993 by Allen Say

All rights reserved. For information about permission

to reproduce selections from this book, write to
Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue
South, New York, New York 10003.

Printed in the United States of America

HOR S100 ORs gen. Sac4e 3) -2ar lL

To Richard, Francine, and Davis
My grandfather was a young man when he left his home in Japan
and went to see the world.
 ETE

He wore European clothes for the first time and began his journey on
a steamship. The Pacific Ocean astonished him.
For three weeks he did not see land. When land finally appeared
it was the New World.
He explored North America by train and riverboat, and often walked
for days on end.
 aay a aan Sa

Deserts with rocks like enormous sculptures amazed him.

 ed.
The endless farm fields reminded him of the ocean he had cross
 Huge cities of factories and tall buildings bewildered and yet excited him.

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He marveled at the towering mountains and rivers as clear as the sky.

11
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He met many people along the way. He shook hands with black men
and white men, with yellow men and red men.

2
The more he traveled, the more he longed to see new places, and never
thought of returning home.

13
 Of all the places he visited, he liked California best. He loved the
strong sunlight there, the Sierra Mountains, the lonely seacoast.

14
After a time 9 he returned to his v = 9 oe A. c 7
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sweetheart . Then he brought h is bride to the new country.

 They made their home by the San Francisco Bay and had a baby girl.

16
As his daughter grew, my grandfather began to think about his own childhood.
He thought about his old friends.
 Wry
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He remembered the mountains and rivers of his home. He surrounded

himself with songbirds, but he could not forget.

18
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Finally, when his daughter was nearly grown, he could wait no more.
He took his family and returned to his homeland.

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 Once again he saw the mountains and rivers of his childhood.
They were just as he had remembered them.

20
Once again he exchanged stories and laughed with his old friends.

21
 But the village was not a place for a daughter from San Francisco.
So my grandfather bought a house in a large city nearby.

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I was born
 When I was a small boy, my favor ite weekend was av 1S it to my
grandfather's house. He told me many stories about Cal ifornia.

24
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He raised warblers and silvereyes, but he could not forget the mountains
and rivers of California. So he planned a trip.

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But a war began. Bombs fell from the sky and scattered our lives
like leaves in a storm.
When the war ended, there was nothing left of the city and of the house
where my grandparents had lived.

27
So they returned to the village where they had been children.
But my grandfather never kept another songbird.
The last time I saw him, my grandfather said that he longed to see
California one more time. He never did.

29
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And when I was nearly grown, I left home and went to see Californ la
for myself.

30
After a time, I came to love the land my grandfather had loved,
and I stayed on and on until I had a daughter of my own.

But I also miss the mountains and rivers of my childhood. I miss

my old friends. So I return now and then, when I can not still
the longing in my heart.

The funny thing is, the moment I am in one country,

I am homesick for the other.

31
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I think I know my grandfather now.

I miss him very much.
 Allen Say was born in Yokohama, Japan,
and came to the United States when he
was sixteen. He lives in San Francisco.
His most recent book, Tree of Cranes,
was selected as an ALA Notable Chil-
dren’s Book and as a Notable Children’s
Trade Book in the field of social studies.

Praise for Tree of Cranes:

“A rare and timeless portrayal, this well-

crafted picture book transcends its holiday
theme and reveals the bittersweet joy of
blending the past with the present.”
—School Library Journal, starred review

“Tree of Cranes is the achievement of a

master in his prime, one of the best picture
books of this or any other year.”
— Horn Book, starred review

Other books written

and illustrated by Allen Say:

El Chino
The Lost Lake
A River Dream
The Bicycle Man
(Selected as an ALA Notable Children’s Book)

Books illustrated by Allen Say:

The Boy of the Three-Year Nap

(written by Dianne Snyder)
Winner ofthe 1988 Caldecott Honor Medal and
the 1988 Boston Globe—Horn Book Award

How My Parents Learned to Eat

(written by Ina R. Friedman)

Selected as a Reading Rainbow Review Book

 ISBN 0-395-57035-2

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