Inside ICE

Starred review from October 1, 2019
Grades 7-10 *Starred Review* The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency was founded in 2003 as part of the nation's reaction to the attacks of September 11, 2001. This installment of the Inside Law Enforcement series (5 titles) details the brief history of ICE, lays out its mission and range of operations (beyond the highly publicized separations and deportations), discusses immigration law, and brings the focus to the controversies that have beleaguered the agency's short existence. It's not a flashy book?the text is direct, accompanied by the occasional photograph or sidebar?and an early avalanche of governmental acronyms may be difficult to navigate, but Sampathkumar does an excellent job of establishing the context, distinguishing ICE from its sister agencies, and framing the facts in a nonpolitical way that raises necessary questions while allowing readers to draw their own conclusions. Most important, it arms young citizens with the knowledge necessary to engage in what will be an important topic in political conversations for years to come. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)