How Did We Get Here?: Exploring the Ancestry of Eastside Residents

By Anita Storey and Nathalie Ortega

Sixth graders Anika Veerkar, Benicio “Benny” Flores, and Libby Abrams constantly study their surroundings, hoping to find the next feature story for their online neighborhood newsletter. But they’ve never turned their inquisitive gazes on themselves before. A chance question about Libby’s door decoration leads the friends to realize they’re all from immigrant families. This discovery prompts their next big questions: Where are our families from? Why and how did they come to the United States? As the friends learn their families’ histories and deal with upsetting news about Anika’s stay in the country, they vow to cherish what brings them together.

Anika, Benny, and Libby are neighborhood friends—and known to be relentlessly curious. They’re always asking questions, and their interest in sharing the answers has led them to start an online newsletter. Encouraged by their parents, they venture out into the community to investigate the most engaging stories.

• Language: English
• Publisher: North Star Editions
• Release date: Sep 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9781631636448

Anita Storey

Maya Chhabra is the author of a middle grade historical novel, Stranger on the Home Front, and a YA verse novel, Chiara in the Dark. Her short stories, poetry, and translations have been published in a variety of venues. Follow her writing updates on Twitter at @MChhabraAuthor. Maya lives in Brooklyn with her wife.

Book preview

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Chapter One

Questions Lead to Interesting Ideas

Anika Veerkar stood on the sidewalk outside her friend Libby’s house, typing story ideas into the notes section of her phone. She bounced on the balls of her feet. Her mind whirred with thoughts. As soon as she spotted a familiar curly-haired head approaching down the sidewalk, she began to speak.

I have a few feature story suggestions! Too many, actually. What do you think about featuring the new middle school principal? Or focusing on the Eastside neighborhood Social Activity Club? They do so much to keep everyone involved and entertained. And there’s always Chippy’s, the new cookie store. Everyone loves cookies.

True. Her friend Benicio Benny Flores grinned. But all those ideas are great. We may have to start publishing more than once a month.

As the most inquisitive kids in all of West Grove, Anika, Benny, and Libby always had ideas because they questioned everything. Questioning led to interviews, which led to research, which led to a need to share the information. It was how their newsletter, The Eastside Extra, began.

Let’s see what Libby thinks, Anika said.

She and Benny walked up the brick path to the house and rang the bell. Benny stared at the front door. No, not the door—the frame. Specifically, the rectangular piece of metal stuck to it.

Has that always been there? he asked.

Anika stood on her tiptoes to get a better look. Anyone watching might have thought she was strange for inspecting a doorframe, or possibly she was interested in construction. She didn’t care. A question had been asked, so the logical step was to answer it.

She shook her head. We would have noticed it.

The door opened. Libby Abrams stood in the doorway. She was the third writer and main photographer of The Eastside Extra. Noticed what? she asked.

Benny pointed to the small, silver rectangle.

That’s a mezuzah, Libby said. There’s a piece of paper inside with writing on it. Jewish people put it in their doorways.

But you’ve been Jewish forever and it wasn’t there before, Anika said.

Shhh, don’t let my grandmother hear you say that. She and my dad had a ‘discussion’ about it earlier. Libby used finger quotes so her friends understood the