The arc of a young girl’s typical school day gives structure to this presentation of a rich mixture of traditional songs, games, riddles, a few simple recipes, and stories from Puerto Rico. Bernier-Grand (In the Shade of the Nispero Tree, 1999, etc.) presents most selections in Spanish and English and provides tidbits of background information, sometimes describing the origin of the song or tale or noting a fact about an animal or a place mentioned in a song or a riddle. The music for the songs is printed at the end of the text. Perky children portraying the racial diversity of Puerto Rico appear in their school uniforms and their play clothes and go through the actions of their day—from early morning, rising to the strains of a “Waking Up Song” with alternate verses sung by parents and children, to bedtime, when “The Song of El Coquí,” with its onomatopoetic refrain that imitates the sound of the ubiquitous island tree frog. Riddles are an important aspect of folklore in most Spanish-speaking cultures and math and animal riddles are included here, as are several stories (in English only), including a tale about the hummingbird that recalls the conflict between Caribs and Tainos in Pre-Columbian times and a Juan Bobo tale. The 27 lizards hiding in Delacre’s (Salsa Stories, 2000, etc.) clear, vibrant watercolors depicting a rural town, will demand attention from readers as they pore over the other details of a contemporary society enlivened by tradition. Although there’s not much documentation here, the presentation of this folkloric material is engaging. (Nonfiction. 5-10)
Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-7613-1910-7
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Millbrook
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The seemingly ageless Seeger brings back his renowned giant for another go in a tuneful tale that, like the art, is a bit sketchy, but chockful of worthy messages. Faced with yearly floods and droughts since they’ve cut down all their trees, the townsfolk decide to build a dam—but the project is stymied by a boulder that is too huge to move. Call on Abiyoyo, suggests the granddaughter of the man with the magic wand, then just “Zoop Zoop” him away again. But the rock that Abiyoyo obligingly flings aside smashes the wand. How to avoid Abiyoyo’s destruction now? Sing the monster to sleep, then make it a peaceful, tree-planting member of the community, of course. Seeger sums it up in a postscript: “every community must learn to manage its giants.” Hays, who illustrated the original (1986), creates colorful, if unfinished-looking, scenes featuring a notably multicultural human cast and a towering Cubist fantasy of a giant. The song, based on a Xhosa lullaby, still has that hard-to-resist sing-along potential, and the themes of waging peace, collective action, and the benefits of sound ecological practices are presented in ways that children will both appreciate and enjoy. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-83271-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2001
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