Under the Same Sun by Sharon Robinson

Under the Same Sun Reviews

• 
  Christopher

  An admirable effort from Sharon Robinson, Under The Same Sun suffers from too many elements in one story. In 32 pages, we get fun family times, an extensive African safari (featuring animals you would expect to see) plus a lesson about the slave trade. The last page comes off as preachy and more like a school lesson than the ending to a story about the fun times between a family reuniting for fun times. Noble but could have been better.
• 
  Crystal

  First off, the illustrations were wonderful. I also appreciated that this book gives us a view of Tanzania. There wasn't really a storyline, but it was a recounting of a series of events in a family visit. I enjoyed seeing the market and the safari too. There is also a bit of a history lesson towards the end with a visit to a place that had been used for slave trafficking. Finally, the author's note gives background information. I like that this book shows another face of Africa.
• 
  Mia

  What a cool book! I didn't realize until I had finished it that this picture book story is based off a TRUE story, and the author is the daughter of Jackie Robinson! Who knew Jackie Robinson was Tanzanian?! Amazing. Follows the story of Sharon and her brother (and their families) taking their mother Rachel on safari. The illustrations are perfect and the story is beautiful -- a mixture of the joy that you feel when you're with family and the sadness you feel when you must depart. Includes a variety of information at the end, as well as a short history lesson on Bagamoyo, an infamous old slave-trading post. Truly amazing story. Highly recommend.
• 
  Panda Incognito

  This picture book is based on real-life experiences that Sharon Robinson, daughter of Jackie Robinson, had while traveling with her mother to Tanzania to visit her brother's family. The story is unique and has a lot of appeal factors, with cross-cultural family interactions, a safari trip to see animals, and a thoughtful message about the history of slavery. This is simply too much for a typical picture book audience, so I didn't read this for storytime, but I would definitely recommend it for school-age kids who can handle the length, wordiness, and complexity of the topics involved.
• 
  Viviane Elbee

  I enjoyed this book, about a family reunion in Tanzania - where American family members and Tanzanian family members meet up to celebrate the grandmother's 85th birthday. It includes a birthday safari trip, with wonderful illustrations of wild animals. It is actually based on a true story - Sharon Robinson, the author, took this trip to Tanzania with her mother for a big family birthday reunion in Tanzania.
• 
  Andy

  A wonderful, exquisite story that introduces Jackie Robinson's family to readers. Written by his daughter Sharon Robinson and beautifully illustrated by AG Ford, the story chronicles Sharon and her mother Ruth Robinson's visit to Africa to see brother/son David and his family and to celebrate Ruth's 85th birthday. This book is a treasure, full of love, laughter, lament and poignancy. A must read.
• 
  Shelli

  This is a true story of the grandson of Jackie Robinson and his desire to reconnect with a heritage that was denied to him as it was to so many dependents of African people who were stolen from their homes and sold into a life of slavery. Under the Same Sun is a beautiful and touching read of a family separated by an ocean that works hard to remain connected.
• 
  Rachael Dixon Eklund

  Such a great story about extended family who lives far away. Perfect book to use as a compare and contrast of cultures. Excellent diverse book to add to your library.
• 
  Angela

  This is a good story about family togetherness despite distance. The illustrations by AG Ford and the Author's Note at the end really make this book.
• 
  Samantha

  In honor of her 85th birthday, Grandmother Bibi and Auntie Sharon travel from America to Tanzania to celebrate with extended family. The family embarks on a three day safari and witness elephants, zebras, and giraffes on their native soil.
  
  On the trip back home the family visits Bagamoyo, the ruins house a museum that was once home to a slave-trading post. Together the family explores their shared history and feel their impending goodbyes on the horizon.
  
  Back matter includes an author's note that reveals the details of the real life trip that inspired this book, a map, a list of Swahili words, and a page (with pictures) of Tanzanian cuisine.
  
  This book read very well. It is apparent even before flipping to the back matter that this story is inspired by an actual experience of the land, people, and animals of Tanzania. I liked all of the realistic details in both text and illustrations that help readers in America picture life in Tanzania. From the mosquito netting that is strung up around the guest room bed to the market trips the family makes for fresh fruit, readers are awash in a slice of life view of Tanzania.
  
  Acrylic paintings finished in oil make up the artwork in the book. The illustrator excels at capturing the beauty and the majesty of the animals the family views while on safari and also at capturing the expressions of the various family members.
  
  Recommended reading for PreK-2 that helps give youngsters a global view of family, animals, and history.
• 
  Melissa

  Bonus points for the topic- an African-American sister and mother visit their brother/son and his family in Tanzania. Much of the book is about the joy of reuniting and a warm positive look at the food and wildlife of Tanzania. An important bit near the end has the joyful extended family visit the ruins of a slave trading post where they soberly reflect on the slave trade and their ancestors who were enslaved. An author's note reveals the family is the wife and children of the great color-barrier breaking Jackie Robinson. The reconnection to African roots and the desire to help economically build an African democracy is briefly and thoughtfully mentioned. A Swahili glossary and page devoted to a Tanzanian meal adds some depth.
  
  The book feels anecdotal and while personal, the super-positive spin makes it feel a little bland until we get to the slave-trading post at which point the story gains some heft. The four spreads on African wildlife dragged a bit for me. There weren't enough specifics to engage older readers and the descriptions were flat. Bottom line I felt the book was uneven, vacillating between flat description, sentimental personal memoir and only occasionally allowing a fascinating glimpse into another culture and a family's compelling commitment to social action and personal reflection on a vitally important part of history.
  
  Absolutely worth purchasing for its strengths. Let's hope more picture books like this follow and broaden the field.
• 
  Barbara

  Even when they are separated by hundreds of miles or even hundreds of years, family bonds are still close as is demonstrated in this appealing picture book. Based on her own family's experiences in celebrating the eighty-fifth birthday of the author's mother as she and her daughter (the author) travel to Tanzania to be reunited with David, her son. The anticipation of a visit from the travelers from the United States is clear on the faces of their relatives who can't wait to welcome them. They spend time catching up, enjoying good foods, and then traveling to the Serengeti National Park where they see lions, zebras, and elephants. The visit ends on a sobering note as they visit Bagamoyo, one of the ports of departure during the slavery trade. The moving account of loss mingled with love and hope for the future amid strong family support is accompanied by illustrations rendered in acrylic and oil. It would be hard not to be moved while thinking of how it must have felt to be ripped from one's family and the land one loved, and yet, the children's questions about slavery show that this is something far in the past for them.
• 
  Caryn Caldwell

  Grandmother Bibi and Auntie Sharon are visiting family in Tanzania. It's Bibi's birthday, and the family has a surprise in store: a safari in Serengeti National Park, followed by a much more sober visit to a slave-trading post on the shores of the Indian Ocean. An author's note at the end provides further background on this story, which is based on a true experience.
  
  Under the Same Sun is a good reminder that even families who are separated are all living under the same sun and can hope to see each other again soon. While the story is lovely, I absolutely adore the illustrations. They are so realistic and full of life and emotion that they almost feel like actual photographs instead of paintings. All in all, a very nice read.
• 
  Lacey Bolen

  This book has many great qualities for a read aloud in a third grade classroom. Not only is it full of similes, metaphors, and imagery (ex: "The sun rose in the sky like an orange ball of fire," "Quicker than lightning,") but it also includes a ton of information on the culture in Tanzania. It includes touches of the Swahili language when introducing foods and animals seen in Tanzania. The story is very touching a relatable for students of all backgrounds. It also touches on slavery in a way that could effectively introduce a unit in social studies, around Martin Luther King day. Along with these many qualities, the illustrations are done beautifully and are effectively done to help students grasp the story, especially when the Swahili language is used.
• 
  Kelsey

  Age: Kindergarten-2nd grade
  Animals: African
  Culture: Tanzania
  
  A unique addition to the picture book collection that discusses family reunions with members that live in different countries, Tanzanian culture, the influence of slavery, and the ties that brought one family back home. Robinson was able to provide the outsider's perspective through two family members that still live in the States as they visit family members that moved back to Tanzania.
  
  While the subject is a worthwhile addition, the story is full of plot holes and tries to fit in a lot of information including an African safari and a sentimental look at the impact of slavery on this family.
• 
  Lynn

  Four and a half stars. This family narrative gives the reader a sense of time and place as it explains how a family traces it's history from slaves to America and the decision for some to return to their homeland.
  The importance of going on the safari was not clear to me, as Bibi "cried tears of joy."
  The illustrations provide the reader with a few details about the market, clothing, and Africa. The pages describing the past are done in sepia, to give the impression of a memory, a dark time. I found it distracting that there was not enough contrast between the color of some of the text which was set on colored pages (thus the half star off).
• 
  Katie Logonauts

  This memoir tells the story of Sharon and her mother's visit to Tanzania to see her brother David and his family. The universal nature of family and togetherness is celebrated as the continents come together. The family goes on a safari and spends a few pages enjoying African animals. The trip ends on a somber note as the families visit the historic slave port of Bagamoyo and discuss their personal history of enslavement, but they turn it to a positive note by thinking about their freedoms and personal connections.
• 
  Naomi

  This book taught several important lessons. First, for the age group, it gave an appropriate lesson regarding slave trade and slavery in America. Second, and more importantly, the lesson of just because a family member doesn't live near you doesn't mean that they don't love you. After all, we are all under the same sun and not that far away (especially in the days of internet!).
• 
  Emily Glomski

  This book is about a family who travels to their native land of Tanzania. While during their trip they learn about what life is like in Tanzania, and their family's history and culture there.
  I would use this book to discuss family's pasts. I would also use this book to talk about slavery, because there is a lot of content about the slave trade in this book.