Guest Post!

Exciting news!  Today is our very first guest post.  Mrs. Skrzat, who I have the pleasure of co-teaching, with is also reading the Reading Olympic's books.  So I present to you her take on Donna Jo Napoli's The King of Mulberry Street.

Did you ever hear the expression, "Books can take you places."?  Well, a book I read this year had such an intriguing setting that I took a trip there with my family recently.

The King of Mulberry Street by Donna Jo Napoli begins in Italy (my roots, but not my destination!) and follows 9 year old Beniamino as he travels by boat to New York City.  When he arrives at Ellis Island his name is changed to Dom Napoli.  (My great grandfather also had his name changed after his arrival to America). Dom heads off to Little Italy, the heart of which is Mulberry Street.  This is the area of New York City where many Italian immigrants settled (including my own!)

I needed to see it for myself. Taste the pasta, eat the gelato and walk on those streets where Dom Napoli's story takes place.  My weekend trip to Mulberry street with my family was much nicer than the dirty and desolate neighborhood that Dom experienced in N.Y.C.   If you want to step into the shoes of a young immigrant, as he makes his way in the Big Apple, this book is for you!
Going places with books...that's kids stuff.