EL CHAPULÍN COLORADO

Beloved Mexican TV character Chapulín Colorado presents everyday onomatopoeia in both English and Spanish.

Dressed in his iconic superhero outfit, el Chapulín Colorado (the Red Grasshopper) is a well-known Mexican TV character from the 1970s, still familiar to children today through eternal reruns. It is not necessary, though, to be familiar with the character to appreciate the book. Colorful, clean-lined illustrations and uncluttered pages center on the onomatopoeia and the bungling superhero. Children will take delight in finding out that these words that mimic the sounds of the things described are heard differently in the two languages: Knuckles on a door go “Knock Knock!” in English and “¡Toc toc!” in Spanish. A companion volume, Ellen, introduces the solar system as Ellen Ochoa, the first Latina astronaut, flies or floats by each planet. The illustrations and presentation in this book follow the same esthetic as the Chapulín Colorado book. The rhyming text informs readers of some characteristic of each planet in bilingual (English / Spanish) format: “Uranus got me a little dizzy / rotating on its side, it looks a little tricky. // El planeta Urano me mareó un poco / girando de lado, parece algo loco.” Though it is not necessary to know who Ellen Ochoa is to follow the book, it was a missed opportunity to not have included something about her in the book.

A charming bilingual offering.