“What is the recipe?” I ask. Abuela laughs. “It is in my heart, Rosie. I use mis ojos, my eyes, to measure. Mis manos, my hands, to feel. Mi boca, my mouth, to taste. My abuela gave it to me, and I am giving it to you.” Each year on Christmas Eve, Rosie’s abuela, mamá, tía, sister, and cousins all gather together in Abuela’s kitchen to make tamales—cleaning corn husks, chopping onions and garlic, roasting chilis, kneading cornmeal dough, seasoning the filling, and folding it all—and tell stories. Rosie learns from her abuela not only how to make a delicious tamale, but how to make a delicious life, one filled with love, plenty of spice, and family.
Picture Book
Star Fishing
Brimming with wonder and enchantment, award-winning author-illustrator Sang-Keun Kim’s Star Fishing imagines who else might be awake on a sleepless night—taking young readers and listeners on an adventure through the stars and into sweet dreams.
Bisa’s Carnaval
It’s time for Carnaval and Clara cannot wait to celebrate her favorite holiday with family, but especially with her great-grandmother. Even if Bisa can’t attend, Clara knows the Carnaval parade will still be special.Costumed lovingly by their bisa, everyone takes to the street for the annual parade. But even among all the colors, costumes, music, and dancing, something is missing . . . or is it someone?With lush, lyrical text and bright, colorful illustrations, this book takes readers to one of the most exciting holidays of the year and reminds us that no matter who or where you are, love is always worth celebrating.
African Proverbs For All Ages
African Proverbs for All Ages is a beautifully-illustrated, engaging picture book about the power of proverbs, how they evolve over time, and the wisdom of various cultures in Africa.
Peggy’s Impossible Tale
Peggy’s Impossible Tale is told in the voice of a remarkable guinea pig. Full of action and surprises, it is guaranteed to captivate the attention of beginning readers. Peggy learns how to communicate with the loving family that adopted her, and she goes on to win a much-coveted prize for her accomplishments.
Chinese Kite Festival
Animal names and their significance in Chinese culture is beautifully explored for young readers in this stunning book. Simple bilingual text helps teach children animal names in both English and Chinese, and little ones will learn that butterflies are a sign of love, bees signify hard work, and more through the very simple and accessible backmatter. Paired with Rich Lo’s vibrant digital watercolors, this simple and practical introduction to Chinese animal names and symbolism is irresistible.
Room For Everyone
Musa and his sister travel to a Zanzibar beach in a shared minibus which, despite Musa’s protests, gets loaded with everything from a man and his bicycle to ten swimmers.
Josefina’s Habichuelas / Las Habichuelas De Josefina (Multilingual Edition)
Like all kids, Josefina loves to eat sweets. She loves warm chocolate chip cookies right out of the oven, cupcakes and candy! One night, while eating a piece of flan, Mami asks her to consider giving up sweets for Lent, the 40 days leading up to Easter. “That’s impossible!” Josefina says. When Mami promises to teach her how to make her favorite dessert, habichuelas con dulce, she agrees to give it a try. Josefina can’t wait to end her fast and eat the delicious sweet cream beans, her family’s traditional Easter dessert. While she and her mom, tias and abuela prepare the dish, they dance to merengue music and tell stories about life back in the Dominican Republic. The kitchen fills with the aromatic smells of cinnamon and sugar, but it’s the feelings of love and happiness Josefina will never forget. On Easter, when the family eats her special dessert, the girl’s grandmother says it’s the best she has ever tasted
A Kid Is A Kid Is A Kid
Being the new kid is hard, a child in the school playground tells us. I can think of better things to ask than if I’m a boy or a girl. Another child comes along and says she gets asked why she always has her nose in a book. Someone else gets asked where they come from.
Gloria’s Porridge
Gloria is making a delicious porridge, but she’s too hungry to share it with the cat. When Gloria goes to fetch some water, cat eats all the porridge . Angry Gloria shakes her spoon at the cat, and the scared cat runs away, starting a chaos around her. A retelling of an Ethiopian folktale by acclaimed author, Elizabeth Laird.