Yossel’s Journey, Illustrated by Johnson Yazzie

A historical picture book about the power of cross-cultural friendships and the joy of finding out the true meaning of home.

When Yossel’s family flees anti-Jewish pogroms in Russia and immigrates to the American Southwest, he worries about making a new home and new friends.
In his family's new store next to the Navajo reservation, Yossel watches neighbors pass through. He learns lots of Navajo (Diné) words, but he's still too afraid and lonely to try talking to anyone. Finally he meets Thomas, a Navajo boy just his age. Making new friends can be hard, especially when you're learning a new language to tell your jokes.

Bank Street College of Education picked Yossel's Journey as one of The Best Children's Books of the Year 2023