Bienvenidos! to a celebration of Christmas, Latino-style! From the ngel (angel) hung above the door to the zapatos (shoes) filled with grass for the wise men s camels, each letter in this festive alphabet introduces children to a Spanish word, and each colorful page takes them through another joyous aspect of the 22 days of the traditional holiday. Vibrant art from acclaimed illustrator Joe Cepeda beautifully complements the lively, rhythmic text to bring the reader a wealth of heritage and a season of light! Feliz Navidad!
Early Years (ages 2-6)
Salsa
Rita, a young girl living in New York’s El Barrio, describes the Afro-Caribbean dance music, salsa, and imagines being a salsa director.
Mice and Beans
In this tale Rosa Maria spends the week getting ready for her granddaughter’s birthday party and trying to avoid attracting mice–unaware that the mice in her walls are preparing for a party of their own.
Let’s Eat
Little Antonio introduces his extended family and explains that Mama is the biggest because “she is going to have a baby any day now.” Everyday she sends the boy to gather the family for their midday meal. On Monday, Papa can’t leave his busy carpentry shop. On Tuesday, his sister Alicia is learning to dance the sevillanas for the summer fiesta. Day after day, when there is an empty seat at the table that Papa built and Mama has filled with inviting food, she sighs, “Ay, que pena! What a pity.” Eventually, it is Mama herself who is missing because it’s time for her to have baby Rosa.
Kikirikí / Quiquiriquí
Marta and Celia have never seen Sunday dinner strut in their backyard, so when Abuela brings home a wily rooster, they are shocked at the rooster’s ugly fate. When the girls accidentally overhear Abuela telling their parents about dinner plans that involve Kiki, they know that they have to save their new friend. They hide him in the closet in their room, but when his joyful cries wake the family at dawn, they know that they’ve been caught. They soon discover that Kiki has a few tricks of his own up his wing, and with a wink, he manages to save the day.
My Abuelita
Abuelita’s hair is the color of salt. Her face is as crinkled as a dried chile. She booms out words as wild as blossoms blooming. She stuffs her carcacha–her jalopy–with all the things she needs: a plumed snake, a castle, a skeleton, and more. Her grandson knows he has the most amazing grandmother ever–with a very important job. With her booming voice and wonderful props, Abuelita is a storyteller. Next to being a grandmother, that may be the most important job of all. Sprinkled with Spanish and infused with love, My Abuelita is a glorious celebration of family, imagination, and the power of story.
See the review in WOW Review, Volume 4, Issue 1.
Little Red Riding Hood
Much-loved fairy tales leap to life in this series of lively retellings. When a little girl puts her picnic basket over her arm and sets off through the woods to grandmother’s house, one of the best-loved fairy tales of all time unfolds.
You Be Me, I’ll Be You
Anna, the interracial child of a White father and Black mother, explores questions and yearnings she has about her identity by “switching” skin colors with her father. With wit and compassion, this book examines issues of concern not only to interracial children, but to all children who worry about their diferences.
The Three Silly Girls Grubb
In this revision of the familiar tale “The Three Billy Goats Gruff,” three sisters manage to outwit Ugly-Boy Bobby who spends his time under the bridge they must cross on their way to school.
Cinderella
Four more much-loved fairy tales leap to life in this series of lively retellings. With the help of her fairy godmother, a kitchen maid mistreated by her stepmother and stepsisters attends the palace ball where she meets the prince of her dreams.