Very beautiful poem with paintings of portraits of migrant students. The concept is phenomenal and brings froth the experiences of migrant children. The portraits add a depth to the poem and illustrate the experiences of the children through their expressions and their words.

(I’m late on this one.)

4 stars

This is a short but lovely and creative collection of poetry discussing a kind of transition that I could never even imagine. Great work.

This is a wonderful collection of art and verse that describe the immigrant experience in heart-wrenchingly vivid words.

Carry On is a collection of poetry about young immigrants who now call Canada home. Each poet brought a unique voice and touched on a variety of topics, such as the loneliness that comes from leaving one's home behind. I do wish there were more poems, as it did feel incomplete, but overall it was a moving collection.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Great poetry. Beautiful illustrations. Overall very solid, I just wish there was *more.* It felt a little too short and I wanted it to last longer.

<i>Carry On </i> is a moving, passionate collection of poetry written by young high school students who are telling their collective stories about what it means to leave a home and land in Quebec. Away from family and friends, culture, weather, and food, each student articulates their feelings on the transition and what it means to call two places home. They were brave, honest, and hopeful!

The poems are accompanied by beautiful images by illustrator, Rogé,

Thank you to NetGalley and OwlKid Books for gifting me a copy of this collection in exchange for an honest review.

Carry On is a quick read featuring illustrated portraits and short poems by young immigrants on leaving their countries and coming to Canada. I think it does a sufficient job at flipping the script. You know the one. Carry On points out that children are leaving their homes, their families, and their friends. A lot come to Canada for one kind of safety or another.

Carry On is also a good introduction to poetry, with shorter poems that say what they mean and don’t hide as much in metaphor or similar techniques. Perfect for a younger audience. I wanted more. More poems and more perspectives as Carry On is short at 36 pages. It feels like a taste of a larger collection, not a collection in its entirety.

Thank you to Net Galley for the digital ARC of this book.

Full of beautiful portrait illustrations and Own Voices poems about individual and personal experiences of immigration. Every immigrant story is unique and this book seeks to highlight the ways people from different countries have experienced immigration to Canada. Hearing personal perspectives is a great way to encourage understanding and empathy. This book is worth a read.

Carry On is a stunning collection of poetry contributed by young new immigrants to Canada. Through this emotive prose, voice is given to an experience that stirs many conflicting emotions, from loneliness and longing, to hope and rebirth. Paired with beautiful portraits of the contributors by Roge, each submission is an evocative tribute to human resilience, and finding a home, wherever that may be, in an ever-changing world.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Owlkids Books for an ARC.

Wow what an absolutely powerful collection of poems and accompanying art. The portraits themselves speak volumes, but paired with the author's words detailing their experiences of immigration to Canada, some of these works are truly breathtaking. This should be added to everyone’s modern poetry collection.

I received an electronic ARC from Owlkids Books through NetGalley.
Powerful Own Voices poetry. Readers feel the emotions from a variety of immigrant high schoolers who all attend the same school in Canada. They share their experiences in a new country - the adjustments, the sorrows, the excitement, the joys. Beautiful portraits accompany each poem so readers not only feel the words but see the expressions to connect with their experiences.

I love the side by sides of poetry and portrait. This is a beautiful piece of prose showcasing newcomers to Canada. Their hearts and stories. As a former high school english teacher, I would be honoured to study this collection of poetry in english classes. The stories presented within the book's binding are filled with hope, hardship, and, above all, perseverance. I will be buying the hardcopy of this one. Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc. I will be promoting this book at every turn.

Carry on is #ownvoices of immigrants experiences in poetry form. This title would make a wonderful addition for grades 3-12. Basically, all students and teachers could use this for inspiration in writing or telling their own stories.

This was a really well written and illustrated book. I loved the concept and the simplicity of it. The illustrations were soft and paired beautifully with the sections.

This wonderful collection of poems are written by high school students who were newcomers to Canada. The poems are lovely, painful, and inspiring. They show sacrifice, hope and determination. Further personalizing and elevating the poems are the accompanying stunning portraits created by artist Rogué. A fantastic read and would make a splendid addition to upper elementary and high school libraries and literacy classrooms.

Thank you to Net Galley and OwlKids Books for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is an anthology of poems by immigrant kids to Canada. I can relate to their feelings, being an immigrant myself. Such a wonderful project, to give these kids a voice to express their views and emotions about this huge change in their lives.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy.

A quick, touching gathering of poetry written by young immigrants to Canada. I wish there had been more poems, and that the poems were longer, but it's a welcome addition to any classroom library.

Immigration is the lifeline of diversity. With globalization and travel, people are increasingly moving across continents with ease. Many have also emigrated from their birth countries for various reasons. Some are economic while others are plainly to escape from poverty or persecution. Some countries open their doors only to specific foreign talents to compensate for their lack of skills in that area. Others do so for humanitarian reasons. Having families in a foreign country is another factor. Not wanting to be separated from their loved ones, they put in the paperwork to bring them them over to be reunited in their new country of choice. For all the economic benefits to the destination countries, there are challenges of adaptation and integration. This is especially so when locals feel threatened and insecure due to the introduction of immigrants who were willing to work more for mich less. Locals fear that immigration would strain their welfare systems and social safety nets. Tensions could also arise due to language or cultural difficulties.

For all the political and economic concerns, perhaps the most challenging of all are the social implications. It is not often that we hear how many young immigrants feel. They are often not directly responsible for what their parents or guardians make on their behalf. This book contains poems written by 15 young immigrants on how they feel about leaving their countries of origin and their struggles to adapt to their new countries. The book is a compilation of poems, portraits, and thoughts from young immigrants in a high school in Quebec, Canada. They speak of how decisions made for them by adults had impacted them both physically and emotionally. They come from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and South America. It is a powerful collection of thoughts and emotions about how young immigrants fear, feel, and hopes about the future. The fears of the new country come with the sadness of leaving their homes of origin. The poems reveal the need to adapt to the external things like new weather changes, strange surroundings, different cultures, identity crises, comparing memories of the past with the conflicted views about the future.

Then there are the portraits which are there for readers to appreciate the fact that immigrants are ordinary folks like you and me. There is no space for arrogance or any arrogant bigotry that elevates local rights at the expense of all others. Immigrants need understanding rather than contempt. We are all in this world together. The Christian message of loving our neighbour can be appropriately practiced through our welcome of immigrants, wherever they are. We need more love. Poems express emotions in ways that prose cannot do. There is no need to explain the words for the expressions enable readers to nuance the emotions in many dimensions. Like the poem of Ariel Kegeles which expresses a longing for a past that is now gone or Olhin Natolla's comparison of a a noisy celebration back home to a subdued occasion in the new country. Almost every poem showcases a longing for the past and some form of trepidation for the future. Most heart-breaking of all is the separation for family and loved ones. Young children draw pictures. Teenagers write poems. These are ways to express the human emotion due to immigration and separation. I must commend the poets for their courage to put into words in their non-native tongue. Perhaps, such efforts are nothing compared to their physical relocation and emotional separation from one country to another. They have given the world a window into their world and their feelings. I believe that being able to identify where they are, how they feel, and what they are hoping for will not only help society at large to empathize with immigrants, but also to be reminded that we are all temporary residents in this world. Let us do our best to be as welcoming of one another as possible. We never know when will that day come when we need to be relocated to another foreign land. I like to conclude with this popular phrase which I paraphrase here: There are no strangers in this world; just friends we have yet to meet. Perhaps, this book has revealed friends in our neighbourhood that we have yet to meet.

ROGÉ is the illustrator of more than twenty children’s books and is the recipient of several awards, including a Governor General’s Award for illustration and a New York Times book award. All the contributors are from Paul-Gérin-Lajoie-d’Outremont high school in Montreal, Quebec.

Rating: 4 stars of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of Owlkids Books and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

A short, profound collection of poems from young immigrants, accompanied by muted and subdued portraits.

Through image and text, a range of authors speak to lived experiences of refugees. Challenge, perservance, and empathy punctuate this book -- well worth reading and sharing with others.