Gift of the Unicorn: The Story of Lue Gim Gong, Florida's Citrus Wizard
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\ School Library JournalGr 5-9-Two brief inspirational biographies of Asian-American immigrants who became successful Florida horticulturists in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The author admits she has taken "poetic liberties" to convey the feelings and emotions of these two men who left behind little record of their private lives. Her writing sometimes becomes flowery as she describes their struggles to overcome prejudice, physical hardship, and financial obstacles to achieve success in America. Lue Gim Gong arrived from China in 1872, worked in a New England shoe factory, and later became an expert cultivator of hardy new varieties of oranges and grapefruits in central Florida. Sukeji "George" Morikami joined Yamato, the first Japanese farming colony on the East Coast of the U.S., in 1906, hoping to earn enough money to return home a wealthy man. Instead he remained in Florida where he became a successful pineapple farmer and millionaire landowner whose property is now the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in Delray Beach. Poor-quality, black-and-white photos illustrate both books. Libraries building large collections of Asian-American studies or Florida local history may be interested in these titles; all others can pass on them.-Ginny Gustin, Sonoma County Library System, Santa Rosa, CA Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.\ \
