Blow Away Soon

blowDisliking the wind that whisks away her favorite possessions, Sophie appeals to her grandmother for help and is instructed on how to build a blow-away-soon, an appeasing gift for the wind, in a story about keeping and giving away.

Family Pictures, 15th Anniversary Edition / Cuadros De Familia, Edición Quinceañera

Family Pictures is the story of Carmen Lomas Garza\’s girlhood: celebrating birthdays, making tamales, finding a hammerhead shark on the beach, picking cactus, going to a fair in Mexico, and confiding to her sister her dreams of becoming an artist. These day-to-day experiences are told through fourteen vignettes of art and a descriptive narrative, each focusing on a different aspect of traditional Mexican American culture. The English-Spanish text and vivid illustrations reflect the author\’s strong sense of family and community. For Mexican Americans, Carmen Lomas Garza offers a book that reflects their lives and traditions. For others, this work offers insights into a beautifully rich community.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 3, Issue 2

Let’s Eat!/A Comer! (My Family: Mi Familia)

It’s dinnertime. Look at all the food! Es la hora de cenar. ¡Cuánta comida! There are beans, tortillas, Hay frijoles, tortillas, cheese, and even a green salad. queso y hasta una ensalada de lechuga. Enough for the whole family. Suficiente para toda la familia. Let’s sit down and enjoy it together. Vamos a sentarnos y disfrutarla juntos. Let’s eat! ¡A comer! This first book in the new bilingual My Family/Mi familia series will charm readers with its close-knit family—a family that is grateful for its many blessings. Éste es el primer libro de la nueva serie My Family/ Mi familia. Los lectores quedarán encantados con esta familia unida que se siente agradecida por todas sus bendiciones.

Sí, Puedes (Play Ball!)

Presents a story of right-handed Jorge Posada being coached by his father to bat left-handed, and how it leads right to the major leagues.

Jorge Posada adora sentir la bola en su guante, el bate en su mano, y el juego del béisbol. Como cualquier otro jugador del equipo Casa Cuba, ya puede batear bien con la mano derecha, pero su padre le dice, “Ser bueno no es ser el mejor.”Su entrenador le dice, “El béisbol es un juego de pulgadas.” De hecho, cuando Casa Cuba tiene que enfrentarse al temible pítcher de Club Caparra, lo que el equipo más necesita es un jugador ambidiestro.Basado en la infancia de Jorge Posada, el cátcher de los New York Yankees, ésta es la historia de un niño puertorriqueño que trabajó duro para convertirse en el mejor, y no se detuvo sino hasta que llegó a ser campeón.

What Can You Do With a Rebozo?

A cradle for baby, a superhero’s cape, a warm blanket on a cool night–there are so many things you can do with a rebozo. Through the eyes of a young girl, readers are introduced to the traditional shawl found in many Mexican and Mexican-American households. Lively rhymes and illustrations as brightly colored as the woven cloths themselves celebrate a warm cultural icon that, with a little imagination, can be used in many different ways.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 3, Issue 2

Come Look With Me, Latin American Art

Color reproductions of twelve masterpieces are accompanied by questions that encourage young readers to learn through visual exploration and interaction. Works from artists such as Diego Rivera (Mexico), Fernando Botero (Columbia), and Ramon Frade (Puerto Rico) are included. Background information ont he artist, the period, the medium, the technique, and the subject of the painting provide context for the art experience.

My Mother and I Are Growing Strong

A five-year-old describes the way her mother is working and coping with problems while her father is in prison.

Prizefighter En Mi Casa

Following a car accident that left her with epilepsy, twelve-year-old Chula–with a little help from a visiting fearsome Mexican boxer–tries to deal with the repercussions her new condition has on her family, neighborhood, and school.

The Throwaway Piece

Jewel is shuttled from one foster home to another. But Jewel wasn’t always a “State Kid.” Her mother Angela’s constant search for happiness through a steady stream of unsavory boyfriends leads to the state’s intervention in Jewel’s life. Listening to her new foster mother’s list of “nos”—no drugs, no lying, no stealing, no skipping school, no boys in or out of the house, no being late—Jewel realizes that her mother said “yes” a lot. Probably too much. She remembers saving Angela’s life when one of many boyfriends beat her, trying to hide another boyfriend’s attempts to rape her when she was fourteen, and being sent to a foster home to please the latest boyfriend. But still, Jewel worries about her mother and knows that she will once again pick up the pieces when the latest jerk leaves. Bit by bit Jewel’s life begins to change for the better after her latest move to a new foster home and school. Although most people can’t see past her tough “State Kid” façade—spray-painted hair, heavy make-up, ripped clothing and unlaced shoes—her English teacher realizes there’s more to her then meets the eye. He convinces Jewel to tutor a fellow student who needs help with math, and gradually she learns how to make friends. In the process, she touches the lives of many people around her, including her social worker, teachers who believe in her, her new-found, tentative friends, and even their parents. But when she’s forced to choose between her life-long job—taking care of her mother”—and doing what’s right for herself, old habits and loyalties are hard to break. Jewel is sure that this time, she can save her mom. But will she be able to save herself?