I really liked this cute children's book. The story is great & the drawing/artwork is wonderful! It might be geared towards children, but adults will really enjoy this too......I think especially the artwork.....has subtle things that adults will enjoy, very colorful & detailed. I also like the picture at the end of the book, showing the real people & dog that this story was based on. Very nicely done!
I received this e-ARC from NetGalley & the publisher Animal Media Group, LLC....simply in return for my own unbiased honest review.

Gina is a wire-haired terrier. At the end of the Cold War, Gina's family decides to head for the United States, taking her with them. Initially, Gina is not a fan of her new surroundings, and she misses her friends back home. One day, though, Gina spots a boxer, Victor, from her perch on the fire escape of her new home, and soon she warms up to him enough to tell him about where she's from and her friends back home. Talking about her past allows Gina the comfort of revisiting home, while at the same time she is getting to know Victor and getting used to her new circumstances - until, finally, she starts to feel at home in her new place.

The art in this children's book is a real knockout - it reminds me of several New Yorker cartoonists, particularly Roz Chast.

Gina From Siberia is a short and funny tale about Gina who gets to experience what it means to uproot your family and try your luck in a completely different country. Now, this may sound like something you have heard about in the news, read about in books or seen in movies - but have you ever gotten the story through the perspective of a dog?

That's right, Gina is a dog and she lives a happy and comfortable life in Siberia where she loves the food, the snow and her friends. When her family decides to move, she is determined to be unhappy. However, when she sees what her family is capable of and willing to risk just so they can bring her with them, she might have to re-evaluate her decision.

This story is based on real events and although the tone of the graphic novel is very light, you're left with a strong impression of what the family has to go through. Gina describe all the things she sees on her travels - different animals, food, people and how Mother and Father cried. The drawing style is really nice too, it's detailed and quirky and fits the story well.

Thank you NetGalley and Animal Media Group for this early copy of Gina From Siberia!

First let me thank Netgalley for this advanced digital copy. I just loved this book. The story line is very heart touching and the illustrations are creatively brilliant. The story follows a little dog named Gina that lives in Siberia with her family and doggie friends. One day, Gina finds out that her family is going to be moving. I don't want to go into the story more as to not spoil it but I have to say that I just loved this book especially the About The Author at the end of the book. I highly recommend this book to everyone of all ages especially ones who love amazing illustrations.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story of this dog's long, long journey from Siberia to the United States. It is quite heartfelt. Gina From Siberia is a perfect family read.

It is absolutely sweet reading and it just gets better when we learn it is based on a real story with the picture of Gina, the dog, and her family on their car.

The book is about moving to a whole different country from a perspective of a terrier. Gina just loves where she lives in (Siberia) and doesn't like the new place (USA) until she makes a friend there. Then she begins to get used to there with her new friend Victor.

A true story told in a dog perspected. It is fun and at the same time you would sympathize the emotions that the family encounters as they leave their home and travel to a new country. And it’s beautiful that they would learn to appreciate things even if it is different from their customs. A fast and easy read with illustrations that would make the reading experience more exciting. Definitely worth the read.

A bit of a missed opportunity this. In dedicating the story of a family moving from Asian Russia to the USA in the 1970s to parents who strive to get their children to a better place, you don't get any of the reasons why the US might have been better. How did the real-life subjects even get permission to leave, and to travel by train through continental Europe, in the first place? Here all the young reader will get as an impression of the USSR is that the shops had queues, and the big grey factories had red Soviet flags, the end. Oh, and superior snow to that in New York. I didn't find the dog's twee narration particularly effective, and the story is, as I say, only half-told. Pleasant illustrations, mind.

This is from an advance review copy for which I thank the publisher.

A really short review for a really short book that's based on the author's own experience! It tells the story of a migration, but from the perspective of a wire-haired terrier. Gina is the unlikely name of the Russian dog who has to leave all of her friends behind and move to the USA, 5,681 miles away from her old home. Or maybe 5,682. They travel by bus, train, car, and plane. Gina isn't happy. She doesn't want to participate her new environment at all, but slowly, she decides it's not so bad.

This was a cute story for kids that may help them cope if they're moving themselves - even if it's just to the next town, or across the city. The text was nice reading and the illustrations are fun and colorful. I recommend it.

Gina From Siberia by Jane Bernstein and Charlotte Glynn

An adorable children’s picture book documenting the traumatic move from Siberia to New York City for Gina — who happens to be a beloved pet. Gina is so upset by the move that she “decides to stay unhappy forever.” Of course, that isn’t what happens …

Based on the experiences of the Backer family in 1978, it boasts charming pictures and funny travel stories, such as the time Gina was wrapped up like “the ugliest Russian baby ever” in order to sneak onto the train. Once they have arrived at their new home — a place that is as different from their old home as it is possible to be — Gina learns how to make new friends after making us laugh at her “Martian landing on Earth” style impressions of the NYC landscape.

Moving to a different country from the viewpoint of the dog. She isn't happy about the move until she makes a friend. The family that this is based on...dressed the dog as a baby. I enjoyed this. There is some filler with the dog describing the people she saw through travels. It could have been better but works for what it needs to do...move the story along.



Recommend? Yes, it'd be a great historical read, conversation with immigration or moving somewhere new.

What a cute little book for children, whose theme is about being in a new place and how strange it all is. Gina the dog, moves with her family to America from Siberia, and experiences changes living in New York City. Gina is based on a true story, when the family moved from Siberia to NYC in 1978 and are now citizens of the United States. Its a sweet little story of change and moving to a new land. I loved the illustrations that support the text.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for a pre-publication ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This is a charming little story about a dog named Gina who moves with her human family from Siberia to New York. It's a simple little story about the normal fears of moving to a very new place, but the story is accompanied by vibrant illustrations that are a feast for the eyes. The book is based on a real family who actually did dress their dog as a baby to keep her safe in the move.

I requested this book to read to my six year old granddaughter, who will be going through a move of her own soon - although nothing like a move from Siberia. Once I have a chance to read it to her I'll update my review with her opinions.

Later...
I finally got to read it to my granddaughter and her face just LIT UP when the book was done. "I really liked this book, I REALLY REALLY liked it!!!" she said. She loved Gina and could relate to her fears and liked that she made friends in her new home. She loved the pictures. And she was able to tell her mom all about how Gina moved from Siberia, all the way to "ummm... where is it... the place with the Statue of Liberty... NEW YORK!!!" and repeated over and over that it was "5,682 or 5,681 miles" (This is a big point in the book). She also thought New York must be a great place to live since it has so many different things to smell, and all that great street food!
Honestly she loved the book so much, and was talking about it so much after, that I have to up my rating to 5 stars. The book is meant for children, not for me, and Holly definitely loves it.

Gina from Siberia is a charming story from a dog's point of view. Gina learns her human family is moving away from Siberia where she has familiar routines and good friends and has no desire whatsoever to leave. Gina loves her family and they love her, though, so they are prepared to undergo this big change together. When at one point during the journey they are told dogs aren't allowed on the train, they creatively work out a disguise so Gina can remain with them.

The story is well written, with engaging descriptions of subways, traffic jams, new foods, and even distance ("America was 5.681 miles away. Or maybe 5.682"). With the framework of leaving a beloved place to relocate to another home, it is timely and would be well suited to help children process their own moves or to understand friends who have arrived from a far-off place and might be feeling unsettled. While this book doesn't give background as to why they are needing to move beyond a better life, it could easily translate to a variety of situations, from understanding more about the experiences and feelings of someone moving across the state or those who have arrived as refugees.

A special mention must be made about the illustrator -- the details draw you in and perfectly complement the story.

It is made all the more delightful when you learn at the close that this is a true story of a family that relocated to the United States and did indeed disguise their miniature terrier as a baby so they wouldn't have to leave her behind.

A fun children's book with heartwarming sentiment! Really loved that this was a true story in the end. Illustrations are realistic yet entertaining. Overall a great pick for any child!

“Gina from Siberia” is great for animal lovers and children adjusting to a move. I liked it, even though it was a little long and the text was sometime difficult to read because of color choices.

A cute, interesting story of a dog emigrating to the USA with her family from Siberia. The hook of why this tale sticks out is due to the manner in which the family had to sneak the dog along with them until the coast was clear (I'll leave the explicit details to discovery by the reader).

The illustrations are beautiful, full-stop. The colorful content within is intricate; I found different things in the pictures each time I flipped through the book (major bonus points for including a Jaws 2 reference). The artist's style is unique (to me, at least)---I'd be able to pick Gina out of a dog-drawing line-up with zero trouble. Her design is eye-catching to me, and such a thing is so very important when trying to ensure that a book stays at the front of the mind (especially when so much of a book's success hinges upon word-of-mouth recommendation).

My wife and I are expecting a child in the fall, and so I'm on the lookout for books that I can read to my kid in the future; ones that span many different subjects, ones that would best serve as a teaching aid as he/she goes along in life, hopefully helping to foster charity and empathy.

This is such a book.

Gina From Siberia is a great way to introduce or reinforce the concept of different cultures/countries and to familiarize them with the tribulations and journeys of those who aren't Americans from the word "go". It'll be a great tool to segue into a base-level conversation about immigration or about how we as a global populace are all more similar than we realize sometimes; I mean, I'd totally be trying to smuggle my dog out of the country.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Animal Media Group for the advance read.

This is such a cute story about belonging to a different place. The story is told from the perspective of Gina, the dog, as the family faces the journey to move from Siberia to America. It is based on a true story, which makes it even more compelling. The illustrations are so cute, and I can imagine kids trying to locate specific images on each page. I'm glad I had the opportunity to read an advanced e-galley of this lovely and cute book.

Cute story. Too many lists of names and things though (foodwise) though, it felt as if the writer wanted to see how many names they could squeeze in...

A gorgeously illustrated short story about a family's love for their dog. Although quite predictable, I was still swept away by the loving pacing.