Passage to Freedom: The Sugihara Story
By Ken Mochizuki
Illustrated by Dom Lee
Paperback: $11.95
Hardcover: out of stock
CD: out of stock
Ebook
View the Teacher's Guide
View the InterviewsAs a Japanese diplomat in Lithuania in the 1940s, Chiune Sugihara had a chance to help thousands of Jews escape the Holocaust through Japan, but it was against his government's orders. When his five-year-old son Hiroki asked, "If we don't help them, won't they die?" Sugihara decided to assist the refugees.
Based on Hiroki Sugihara's own words, Passage to Freedom is the first fully illustrated children's book to tell Sugihara's heroic story, highlighting his courageous humanity, and the importance of a child's opinion in his father's decision.
Check out the research-based read aloud and paired text lessons for Passage to Freedom created by the staff at the award-winning, non-profit ReadWorks.org.
Check out the classroom-tested, teacher-created lesson plan, provided by Achieve the Core, a Student Achievement Partners website designed to help educators understand and implement the Common Core State Standards.
Use Passage to Freedom with the field-tested lesson plan, Walk a Quote: A Lesson Based on the Sugihara Story, by Valerie Person, provided by the Museum Teachers Fellows of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
For classroom resources, check out the article “What is Good Citizenship? The Story of Chiune Sugihara” by Dr. J. Allen Bryant of Appalachian State University in Social Studies and the Young Learner, a journal from the National Council for the Social Studies.
Check out the Activity Guide from Live Oak Media, which creates readalongs to help children learn to read and develop language skills.
Discover more reading and craft tips created by the staff and partners of Reading to Kids, a grassroots organization dedicated to inspiring underserved children with a love of reading.
Reviews & Comments
Common Core Grades 4-6 Top Nonfiction Title, School Library Journal and The Horn BookPublishers Weekly
Booklist
The Bulletin
Horn Book Magazine
San Francisco Chronicle
Childrens' Book Review Magazine
Jewish Book Council
Parenting Magazine
MultiCultural Review
Parent Council
Seattle Times
Rhapsody in Books Weblog
San Diego Jewish Press Heritage
Maw Books
School Library Journal
Smithsonian Magazine
American Bookseller
Into the Wardrobe
About the Creators
Ken Mochizuki - Author
is the award-winning author of numerous books for children from Lee & Low Books. Mr. Mochizuki lives in Maple Valley, Washington, where he teaches, writes children's books, and gives presentations about his work full time.
Dom Lee
DOM LEE made his picture-book debut with Baseball Saved Us. He grew up in Seoul, South Korea, and went on to illustrate books in both the United States and Korea. His titles for Lee & Low include Ken Mochizuki's Passage to Freedom and Heroes, as well as the award-winning Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds. Lee's unique illustration style involves applying encaustic beeswax on paper, then scratching out images, and finally coloring the images with oil paint. Lee and his wife live in Hollis, New York.
Related Titles
About This Title
ISBN
Paperback: 9781584301578
Hardcover: 9781880000496
CD: 9781591123330
Awards
Texas Bluebonnet Masterlist
Texas Library Association (TLA)
Jane Addams Children's Book Award Honor Book
American Library Association (ALA)
Starred Review
Publishers Weekly
Parent's Choice Gold Award
Parents' Choice Foundation
Teacher's Choices
International Reading Association (IRA)
Notable Books for a Global Society
International Reading Association (IRA)
Books to Read Aloud to Children of All Ages
Bank Street College
Children's Bookseller's Choice
American Bookseller's Association
Children's Peace Book Awards
California Peace Education Fund
Choices
Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
Close the Book on Hate Reading List
Anti-Defamation League
Honor Book Award
Society of School Librarians International
Jewish Book Award Finalist
Jewish Book Council
Los Angeles' 100 Best Books
International Reading Association (IRA)
Nominee, Picture Book for Older Readers
California Young Readers Medal
Notable Children's Book
Smithsonian
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People
National Council for the Social Studies/ Children's Book Council
Pick of the List
American Bookseller's Association
Guided Reading:
ULexile:
AD610LInterest Level:
Grades 1 - 6Reading Level:
Grades 2 - 3Themes
Nonfiction, War, Responsibility, Overcoming Obstacles, Multiethnic interest, Jewish Interest, Immigration, History, Heroism, Fathers, Families, Discrimination, Asian/Asian American Interest, Empathy/Compassion, Integrity/Honesty , Leadership, People In Motion, Persistence/Grit, Respect/Citizenship, World War II, Pride, Collaboration, Courage, Gratitude, Protest, Tolerance/Acceptance
Part of These Collections
Asian/Asian American English Collection Grades 3-5, Asian American English Collection Middle School, Fluent Dual Language , Fluent English, Nonfiction Grades 3-6, High-Low Books for Preteens (Grades 4-6), Listening Library, Listening Library, Refugee Children's Book Collection, Immigration Collection, English Guided Reading Level U, Social Activism Collection, High-Low Books for Teens: Middle and High School,
