Imagine & Ink Know No Borders

     Poetry is a genre were we can express our feelings, be funny, express our thoughts, etc. I personally love poetry because I just believe that we never stop learning from it. The picture book I pick is Imagine by Juan Felipe Herrera and illustrated by Lauren Castillo and the anthology of poetry I choose is called Ink Knows No Borders Edited by Patrice Vecchione and Alyssa Raymond Foreword by Javier Zamora and afterword by Emtithal Mahmoud. 
Imagine is a poem written by Juan Felipe Herrera, who invites his readers to imagine or dream what would happen. The poem was an autobiography of his life. In the picture book we can see that Juan Felipe Herrera love been with his mother and family. We can also depict that he immigrated to the United States when he was just a boy. In his poem Juan Felipe Herrera said that he imagine being in a school where he did not know the language, the culture, and the people. He finally adjusted himself to his reality and was able to achieve all his dreams. I personally love this book because it allows us to dream and to figure out that if we work hard all of our dreams can become true. The illustrations in this picture book are amazing because they depict what is actually happening in the story. If I were to be just looking at the pictures, alone I will be able to figure out the story. I love how they use all kinds of shading and colors. The illustrations were made in pen and foam monoprint.  

    Ink Knows No Borders is considered an anthology of poetry since it contains many poems together. These poems talk about immigration and refuge. I believe that what makes this book special to me is that each poem has its own story. I personally pick this book because of my background but I totally recommend it for someone else to read since it shows and tells how refuges or we immigrants feel of being in a country that is not ours and were discrimination happens. I was surprise with some of these testimonies because I could not believe how we are sometimes treat it thanks to our looks.  
   In conclusion, I read picture book Imagine by Juan Felipe Herrera and illustrated by Lauren Castillo and anthology Ink Knows No Borders Edited by Patrice Vecchione and Alyssa Raymond Foreword by Javier Zamora and afterword by Emtithal Mahmoud. Both of these books have their message and I totally recommended reading them since I believe we will be able to understand more all those people that immigrate.