Joseph's Big Ride

K-Gr 2—Joseph has made a long journey from a refugee camp in Kenya to America. After traveling with his mother, he finds himself in a place he doesn't understand. Surrounded by a new world, Joseph tries to find familiar things and friendly faces. He discovers both when a girl he later nicknames "Whoosh" flies by on her bicycle, her dark skin matching his but her long, curly hair dominating the view. "Are you going to my school?" Whoosh calls. She points, and he sees a building that's long like a river. But his mind is on the bike. He will go to school, he decides, because the bike is going there. This sweet and simple tale shows that even when you are transported to a different world, some things never change. Farish captures the normalcy of the day in a life of a refugee child. The narrative, which focuses on building a friendship, is paired with Daley's vibrant illustrations, which depict just how fast the minds, and bikes, of young children can go.