Independent Reading Level: Preschool - 3rd Grade
Awards: NPR Best Book Of The Year (2012)

Based on the true story about Joyce Carol Thomas (the author).
In 1948, Joyce, the little girl dressed in pig tails and ribbon in her hair, moves with her family from Oklahoma to California. She calls the new land of California, "The Land of Milk and Honey". This quote is repeated a few times within the book. While riding the train, Joyce sees new and exciting things in the environment that gets her excited to go to "The Land of Milk and Honey". The author expresses the detail of what she remembers and get the readers to see her thoughts that put us in her special place. The story is told in a way that it seems like it is spoken like a song with a good rhythm behind it. The illustration captures all of the fine details that Joyce experiences.

MY THOUGHTS:
I have given this 2 stars because I do not really care for this book. While other may like it, and I hope you do, I just did not care for it. ( )

In my opinion this is a good book for teaching about poetry and rhythm. The language has a pattern, most of the paragraphs end with the phrase, "you're in the Land of Milk and Honey". The way the story is told makes it seem poetic or spoken like a song. There are quite a few metaphors in the text which make it have deeper meanings or make it more complicated to read. For example, "...past a cactus raising hairy arms to catch the last light from the falling sun" This would be harder for younger readers to understand as they would think the cactus actually had arms, but good for older readers learning about poetry and metaphors to practice with. This book pushes readers to use their critical thinking skills to decipher means of the text and understand the messages the author is giving. The big idea of this book is an African American family leaving for the west coast in order to get more job opportunities and start a new life. This message is important to learn about as a student because it not only involves history but history about African Americans and the struggles they faced finding jobs in this time period. ( )

In this poem a young girls heart is in California. The story is about the environment and people throughout California. The poem describes the beauty in our world and you know you are in the Land of Milk and Honey. I believe the poem is describing freedom to black people from slavery and they are taking in every last bit of it. ( )

Ages 7-11

In the Land of Milk and Honey tells the true story of Thomas’s family moving from Oklahoma to California in 1948 in search of greater opportunity. The narrator’s voice exudes anticipation, hope, and possibility on the way to San Francisco, a multicultural city filled with music and colors.

Thomas’s narrative unfolds in free form poetry. Examples of alliteration, repetition, simile, and metaphor abound. From the train window, Joyce sees “a snake whose body is a pen writing calligraphy” and in San Francisco she hears “ever-changing rhythms / call the feet to follow the beat.”

Floyd creates illustrations with a vintage feel: they are grainy with hints of sepia, reflecting memories recalled from long ago. Floyd includes detailed landscapes with leaping coyotes, lush fields, and the overwhelming expanse of the Golden Gate bridge; however, the illustrations focus on portraits of young Joyce and her family, emphasizing expressions of wonder and close family ties.

For children learning about poetry or how to describe their homes or travels with vivid language, In the Land of Milk and Honey serves as an excellent example. The words evoke all five of the senses to illuminate a special time and place in the reader’s mind. Highly recommended. ( )