Beautiful middle grade graphic novel about a young girl who flees her home and parents in Cuba for New York City during Fidel Castro's revolution. The story is told primarily through the illustrations and the use of color. The sparse words are in Spanish. Moving, heart-breaking, hopeful, this story will be a great catalyst for further learning about Cuban history and Operation Pedro Pan.

The illustrations in this graphic novel tell an amazing story of resilience as a young girl discovers that “home” can have many different meanings. Marisol’s parents choose to send her to the United States from their home in Cuba as life in their country becomes more dangerous. Marisol struggles with foster parents, a new neighborhood, and a school in a country where she doesn’t speak the language. The marvelous illustrations bring this story to life.

“Isla to Island” vividly narrates Marisol’s experiences in America with very few words. Color is used to evoke emotion. We see Marisol’s trauma in grays and her triumph in brilliant pastels. An author’s note explains the program that transported children from a politically fragile Cuba to the United States. Recommended.

Beautifully illustrated, moving, and wordless graphic novel about a young girl sent to live with foster parents in New York after the Cuban Revolution.

RTC

Disclaimer: I received a free e-ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! What a powerful story of resilience, beautifully told through pictures. I loved the use of color to express Marisol’s emotions and feelings of belonging. I would highly recommend this to readers of realistic juvenile fiction, historical fiction, or immigrant stories.

Thank you to the Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced electronic review copy of this wonderful book. This wordless (mostly) book is a universal immigrant story of survival, adaptation, and adjustment to the new country. Highly relatable, especially for any immigrant, this book is beautifully told through detailed illustrations and fantastic use of color. Looking forward to using this book with my English language learners as we build deeper connections to the text and each other.

Isla to Island begins with colorful, idyllic illustrations of young Isla with her parents in Cuba, to gloomy gray interpretations of new home New York, and finally whimsical compilations of recipes and drawings as Isla adjusts to her new family and diasporic culture.

Isla to Island is a wordless graphic novel that follows a girl, Marisol, who immigrates to the United States from Cuba in the sixties. When Cuba becomes a dangerous place, Marisol's parents have to make the hard decision to send her away to safety. Marisol has to navigate a new country on her own. She misses her family, and she needs to adjust to a new situation. Readers will enjoy the illustrations. There is a lot to unpack with the pictures and colors as there are not many words in the novel. I think readers will struggle with the text if they don't have background knowledge of this time period. Readers should definitely read the content at the end of the book to get more information and suggestions for further reading.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

A wonderfully illustrated graphic novel about a young girl named Marisol who has to flee her home in Cuba alone to live in Brooklyn. The story beautifully navigates all the feelings of being in a strange, new place and trying to find where you fit in. A great book for reluctant readers, as it is mostly wordless yet still tells a very compelling story.

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

In this mostly wordless graphic novel, we meet Isla's parents, who marry in 1945 and are living in Cuba. When Isla comes along, the family is closely knit. They go to parks together and press flowers when they return home, and seem to have a good life. In 1960, after Batista and Castro, their neighborhood becomes dangerous. A window in Isla's room is shattered, and the family is scared. The parents decide to send Isla to New York City with Operation Pedro Pan. Isla arrives to the US alone, but is fostered by a very caring and concerned older couple who do what they can to make her comfortable, but who find it hard to discern exactly what she needs. Isla goes to a Catholic school where many of the children are mean to her, and she struggles with learning, since her command of English isn't good. Her world is portrayed as predominately gray. She eventually discovers books, and through these shares with her foster parents her love of plants and flowers, and color slowly returns to her world. Her foster parents take her to parks and greenhouses, school becomes a bit easier, and she gains enough confidence to make friends. A series of snapshots show her life after her school years when she is able to reunite with her parents and have a family of her own.
Strengths: This was a very beautifully done graphic novel that managed to convey a huge amount of information with very few words. There are some song lyrics, signs, and labels on pictures. Isla's emotions are deftly conveyed through facial expressions and body language, and the device of having her arrival in the US be portrayed in black and white, with just the red flower in her hair put there by her father was very powerful. The frustration she feels, and the frustration her foster parents feel in not being able to help her more is palpable, and it was a huge relief when she discovered books and was able to feel more comfortable in her new home. This was a fascinating look at one Pedro Pan experience, and done in a particularly effective way.
Weaknesses: Operation Pedro Pan is such an interesting historical event that readers may find themselves wanting more details. It's amazing the details that are conveyed, and there is a selected reading list and some explanation at the end, but many readers will want to investigate some further resources.
What I really think: This would be a bold but not unwarranted choice for the 2022 Newbery Award. I will buy a copy, especially for our English Language Learners.

I had no idea this was a wordless book until a couple pages in when I was absorbed into the imagery and the feelings of young Isla. We need quality wordless books like this for "reluctant" readers. This is at the top of my order list for the library I work for. AN exceptional use of color and drawings to tell a powerful story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Atheneum Books for Young Readers for an early read!

Wow, fantastic wordless historical graphic novel. My little bit of Spanish helped me figure out a little bit of what was going on, the few times written words were shown. Otherwise, it's all on the pictures. A great snapshot of what it's like to be plucked from your world and dropped in a totally foreign one. The author's note in the back provides further insight for readers without the historical background knowledge and gives a further reading list. Highly recommend!

Thanks Netgalley for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

Nearly wordless book tells the story of a girl sent by her parents from Cuba, newly taken over by the Castro regime, to the U.S., where she is raised by a sympathetic older couple. The use of color - and its absence - is used to dramatic effect to show her pain at leaving her lush, tropical home to the relative colorlessness of NYC. But as she acclimates, finds mentors, discovers books and the library, and starts to make friends among her peers, the colors change from drab to vivid.

The author and illustrator paint a beautiful picture of a young immigrant child’s journey to the United States in this graphic novel. This book shows the truths of what happens often in schools and highlights the resiliency of a young girl as she navigates her way through life at a young age.

A gloriously compelling and captivating story. Isla to Island conveys more in images than many stories can with words. It's masterful artwork and use of color convey love, loss, hope, curiosity, coping, and growth. Marisol's journey will warm the hearts of any reader.

A beautiful, largely wordless graphic novel that follows a young Cuban refugee's early childhood in Cuba and eventual evacuation to NYC, which she finds to be initially cold and alien. The main story takes place over about a year and focuses on the girl's adaptation to America and the efforts of her (admittedly very kind) foster parents to help her adapt. The story ends on a positive note and is charmingly illustrated.

I highly recommend the graphic novel Isla to Island. This (mostly) wordless graphic novel manages to express such a touching story. The use of color is extremely important and extremely well done as a vehicle to show the main character’s interest and joy in her new surroundings. I really appreciated how books and flowers were her catalyst, for those things also bring joy to me. I would love for children AND educators to spend time with this book. I feel it shows realistically the experience some of the unaccompanied minors can have upon entering the US. It might make some people more empathetic and patient with our students who are new arrivals! Beautifully done.

A beautifully told story that highlights an immigrant experience not often represented in kidlit. Isla to Island highlights both the experiences of new immigrants as well as the struggles of English language learners. This book would pair well with Cuba in My Pocket, Enchanted Air, and The Red Umbrella.

Oh, this was beautiful. The way color is used to express the loneliness, fear, and confusion that Marisol experiences was so effective, and the gradual addition of color back into her world was gorgeous. This book didn't need words to tell the story. I would have liked to see how Marisol's family is doing back in Cuba, but I also understand that some stories don't always get closure. Also, bless that foster family, because they seemed fantastic. This book has great value as a bridge for early readers, people who may not read English well, people who are away from their families or homes, immigrants, and so many others, and I will absolutely be recommending it.