New York-based illustrator, artist and author Ellen Weinstein has delved into her family history for her latest picture book, Five Stories, which explores the people and character of NYC’s Lower East Side.
We’re big fans of award-winning illustrator Ellen Weinstein here at Creative Boom, whose previous picture books include the dazzling Yayoi Kusama: From Here to Infinity and the quirky Recipes for Good Luck. In her latest title, Five Stories, she takes a more personal approach after deciding to research her family history.
Centred around a building in New York’s Lower East Side, Five Stories tells the story of the five generations who have lived there over the years. Charting the interiors and street scenes as they change over a century, Five Stories is a fascinating snapshot of a community with ever-shifting tastes, sounds and histories.
The book came about when Ellen decided to learn more about the long journey her grandmother and great-grandparents took during the early 1900s. Having travelled from Russia by boat, Ellen wondered what it must have been like for them to leave behind everything they knew and start a new life in a strange place.
Interior from Five Stories. Text © 2024 by Ellen Weinstein illustrations © 2024 by Ellen Weinstein. Used with permission from Holiday House Publishing, Inc.
Interior from Five Stories. Text © 2024 by Ellen Weinstein illustrations © 2024 by Ellen Weinstein. Used with permission from Holiday House Publishing, Inc.
“The first family in the story is based on my grandmother, Jenny Epstein, her brothers, and my great-grandparents,” Ellen tells Creative Boom. “The other families are composed of people I learned about. I interviewed my friends and neighbours about their stories of immigration and migration, as well as the stories of their grandparents and great-grandparents.”
This research process was both engaging and sometimes surprising. “Much of my research consisted of talking to people,” Ellen explains. Over the course of eighteen months, I interviewed historians, curators, and librarians at the Tenement Museum, Eldridge Street Synagogue, Henry Street Settlement, and Seward Park Library. I also talked to the principals and students at local Public Schools and a dual language school for English and Mandarin.”
Crucially, all of these people were within walking distance of Ellen’s home. In the process, she discovered new things about friends and neighbours she had known for years. “A friend shared his experience of moving from the Dominican Republic as a young boy,” she reveals. I visited a dual language class at a local school and found the students eager to share their recent experiences of moving from China to the Lower East Side.
“I also discovered more about my family history through interviewing my mother. Although the stories I heard came from different places and eras, I couldn’t help but notice how much they had in common.”
Interior from Five Stories. Text © 2024 by Ellen Weinstein illustrations © 2024 by Ellen Weinstein. Used with permission from Holiday House Publishing, Inc.
In fact, Ellen’s family has been part of the neighbourhood’s fabric for the past 120 years. And she herself, as a lifelong resident, has witnessed how it has managed to change yet remain the same. “As I dug deeper into the history, I began to look at places I would just walk by with a deeper understanding and appreciation of the stories they contain,” she says.
“Some of the research brought back my own memories of stores and people like the Knish vendor and the local Double Dutch champions.”
And what is the elusive character that pulls the neighbourhood together? Ellen concludes that it is rooted in history and defined by a diverse, vibrant and thriving community.
“It is a special place shaped by the layering of tastes, stories, sounds, and histories of the people who have made it their home,” she says. “The Lower East Side and the story of immigration to America are inextricably linked.”
