FROM HERE TO THERE

The scope of a girl’s world broadens in this simple book that introduces the scale of existence, in a game of identity and location that most children have played. “My name is Maria Mendoza,” the intimate text begins. “I live with my father, my mother, my baby brother, Tony, and my older sister, Angelica at number 43 Juniper street.” Maria goes on to name her place in her town, county, state, country, continent, hemisphere, planet, solar system, galaxy, and universe, knowing that as small as it may be in comparison, her immediate world is significant. She is still Maria Mendoza, “from here to there.” Cuyler’s plain text is laden with meaning for new readers; she allows them to draw their own conclusions, which they will. Pak’s bright colors and perspective help children keep track of Maria’s place in the universe, and with folksy familiarity, take the vistas from local to grand. (Picture book, 3-6)