One Tiny Twig

Rhema, Dan. One Tiny Twig. Ill. by Michael Leonard. Louisville, KY: Mesquite Tree Press, 2003.

Emily Twig's 14th birthday is coming up. She is given a very special present -- some family heirlooms. These send her on a quest to learn more about her ancestors.  She partners with her grandfather to learn more. She visits a cemetery and learns to rub tombstones, a practice that is somewhat controversial. She then checks the local archive where she locates her ancestor on a census and discovers his country of origin. On a trip to Ellis Island, she finds his passenger list. Between she and her grandfather, they are able to locate many of their Twig ancestors.  Some of the explanations she is given are overly simplistic. She really didn't have to travel all the way to Ellis Island (even when the book was written) to locate the passenger list. Still, it's a great book to interest younger persons in researching their ancestors.  (3.5 stars)

This is part of the Friday series on children's literature and genealogy.