All the Way to America: The Story of a Big Italian Family and a Little Shovel

In this picture book, author and illustrator Dan Yaccarino tells about his own family’s personal history. His great-grandfather Michael Yaccarino (nee Michele Iaccarino) grew up in a small village in Italy, using a little shovel to work hard tending to the family’s crops. But now matter how hard the family worked, they lived in poverty. So Michael left Italy for America to search for better economic opportunities, with his parents handing him the little shovel, some family photographs, a family recipe for tomato sauce, and the advice to work hard, enjoy life, and remember family. The book then follows Michael’s life and work in New York and that of his successive generations. Throughout all the changes in the family, each father show more would hand down to his son the little shovel and the advice that came from Michael’s parents back in Italy.

This book is a celebration of both family and hard work. With each generation, the reader sees yet another business venture put forth by the Yaccarino family – whether it’s pushcart peddling, opening a market, running a restaurant, or even writing and illustrating children’s books – and how the little shovel helped in every context.

The illustrations, created using gouache on watercolor paper, are bright and appealing. They give the impression of a family scrapbook, which is further accented by the framed “photographs” of the family over time displayed at the end. Children will delight in finding the little shovel at work in each of the Yaccarino generations’ labors. There are also numerous fun details to be found in the illustrations, such as a game of bocce ball at a family dinner or a small cat skittering about in a bakery.

I reviewed this book for EconKids. Read the full review (and many more) here: http://econkids.rutgers.edu/new-picture-books-in-2011-first-word-a-i/2080-all-th... show less

In All The Way To America, author-illustrator Dan Yaccarino tell the story of his great-grandfather's journey from Italy to America. As he left Italy, his parents encouraged him to "Work hard, but remember to enjoy life. And never forget your family." This is the theme that has been passed along four generations of his family to this day. It's a book about values and traditions that can apply to everyone. It also gives interesting points into the life of immigrants at the turn of the last century.

This is a great book that talks about a family that immigrated from Italy. Each young man is handed a shovel from his father and it's passed down through the generations. This shovel is a symbol of the hard work it took to start life in America and a symbol of their family.

This story is great for kids because it talks about the hardships of immigration and about how important family legacies are.

This book tells the story of an Italian immigrant that come to America with his little shovel. The idea of hard work, family and life enjoyment permeate the whole story. What a touching and beautifull book. Both, the content and the illustrations are connected to make this story real and to bring this book to life. I visualize myself using this book with my future students who will probably be from families of immigrants from different countries.
Reading Journal: count as 1 Picture Book

This would be a great story to share in any classroom. It would be fun to open up a unit when students are sharing about their own families and their history. It would be great for students to learn about the plight of so many Americans long ago in our history and currently in these times of immigration headlines. It could also open up a dialogue with students and their parents about where their ancestors came from.

I really enjoyed this story. This may partially be because I am part of a large Italian family and my ancestors came from Italy to the United States, just like these characters. That being said, I believe that most children will be able to relate to this book. Hopefully many children will know of their family's history and be able to connect their family's migration to the United States to this story. I also really enjoyed how the story dealt with tradition and family history. I thought it was very neat to use the shovel as a family heirloom that is passed down through generations and is a tangible object that represents family, tradition, and the bravery of new beginnings. I believe that this story is a good introduction for students show more to learn about families immigrating to the United States and I also believe (and hope) that this story would encourage students to explore their own family histories. show less

This book tells the story of a child’s great-grandfather, Michele, who immigrated to the United States in search of a better life. Michele went through Ellis Island and was given the name Michael. He worked in a bakery and married a woman named Adeline. Michael and Adeline had five children. One of their children, Dan, opened an Italian market with his wife. Mike and Elaine are the child’s parents who opened a barbershop. The family always taught each other to work hard and love their family, and the author has held this advice close to heart.
This book tackles the subject of immigration, which is a controversial current event in our country right now. I am glad I read this book because I had not read anything about immigration, and show more it is something that is extremely relevant at the moment. show less