DÍA DE DISFRACES

Madrid resident, author, and illustrator Gómez delivers yet another delightful picture book reflecting childhood’s simple joys.

A young, brown-skinned girl is eager to show off her homemade rabbit get-up at her class’s upcoming costume party. Unfortunately, on the big day, she wakes up sick, so she has to stay home, much to her chagrin. Feeling better the next day, she dons her rabbit costume upon her mother’s suggestion, then eagerly heads to school. Her schoolmates’ reception, however, is less than ideal—students stare, point, and laugh. A moving, wordless double-page spread shows the protagonist running away from the playground in embarrassment. But when Hugo, who also missed the costume party, arrives wearing a carrot costume—“seriously!”—a game of rabbit-chases-the-carrot begins, and soon everyone wants to join the fun. The text is inflected with Spanish colloquialisms (cole, conejito, tenía tantas ganas, genial) from beginning to heartfelt end. The translation in the simultaneously published English edition is somewhat choppy and doesn't do the original Spanish edition justice. The charming paper collage and digital illustrations have a flat rendering style reminiscent of child art and faithfully capture the distinctive gestures and deeply felt emotions of young children. The book’s artwork includes diverse representation. (This review was updated for accuracy.)

Genial and satisfying in its sweet, childlike simplicity.