In his debut as an author, Velasquez, illustrator of The Sound That Jazz Makes (2000) tells an entertaining first-person story (presumably autobiographical) of an unnamed Puerto Rican boy in the ’50s who spends every summer with his grandmother in Spanish Harlem. The boy draws in his sketchbook as Grandma Carmen tells stories of her childhood in Puerto Rico and plays her much-loved records, especially her favorite song that she always listens to with one hand raised and her other hand over her heart. When the narrator and his grandma attend a concert by the most famous band in Puerto Rico, the band dedicates this special song to Grandma Carmen, and the audience members also listen with one hand raised and the other over their hearts. We learn along with the young narrator that “En Mi Viejo San Juan” is special to those of Puerto Rican heritage, capturing their longing for their homeland. The story ends with the grown narrator, now an artist in his own studio (painting this work’s cover), remembering his grandma and playing her favorite song on his modern sound system—with his hand over his heart. Several Spanish sentences and phrases are worked into the text (with English translations), and the words to Grandma’s song are also included in both Spanish and English. Velasquez is a talented painter whose illustrations capture the love between generations and the excitement of attending a live concert and meeting professional musicians. Thoughtful details add to the flavor of the period; tiny phonograph album covers fill the endpapers, historical artifacts to today’s readers. Although we can’t hear Grandma’s song, this heart-felt story has a melody of its own. (author’s note) (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: May 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-8027-8760-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Walker
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2001
Tender and affirming.
A father and child bond while camping.
The two awaken in their tent on a chilly morning in the woods. The young narrator is cold, but Daddy says they’ll warm up as they start walking. As the pair hike past trees and over rocks, then bait their hooks and cast their lines, it becomes apparent that Daddy is retracing the path he and his late father, Pop-Pop, once took, re-creating the same moments of wonder and awe. The child ponders: “Are we looking under the same rocks? Weaving through the same trails? Resting beneath the same magnolia tree as we sit still, listen, and breathe?” The narrator becomes overwhelmed with emotion over the loss of Pop-Pop, but Daddy says that he feels the same way and lets the protagonist know that showing emotion is OK—a valuable lesson for young readers coping with grief. This potent, poetic story is complemented by Fisher’s art, which blends soft colors and is full of movement and captures the characters’ expressions. Fisher has a delicate touch, conveying the small pleasures of the great outdoors as well as the importance of giving oneself permission to sit with sadness. Daddy and the child are brown-skinned, while Pop-Pop, seen in flashback, is lighter-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Tender and affirming. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780316055864
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
A lovely vision for small, sensitive existentialists.
Under the desert night sky, Dad helps his child find cosmic comfort.
The vast universe has made a child feel too small despite their close family. Until, the young narrator tells us, they and their father pack their old pickup, driving through the “rubber and french fries” smell of the city and the “sweet and smoky” mountain scent to camp off-road in a remote arroyo. Together they see tiny beetle prints, jump in sand dunes, name birds, build a fire, watch the sunset, and stretch out in the truck bed. A thoughtful, small human, the child admits to being scared of “how big the universe is and how it goes on and on forever.” But equally thoughtful Dad explains that stars, beetles, birds, and even people are made of energy. Angst is not easily tamed, but snuggling and giving the constellations idiosyncratic names help, as does Mom’s back-at-home surprise: glowing stars covering the narrator’s room. In this bed under the stars, this budding philosopher finally feels “at home here in the universe.” It’s a quiet, contemplative tale that might not strike a chord with all readers but will reassure those who share the protagonist’s worries. Delicate, realistic art plays warm orange and brown hues against blues from pale to indigo, balancing (living) warmth and (interstellar) distance. The child and family are light-skinned and redheaded. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A lovely vision for small, sensitive existentialists. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: April 4, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1239-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
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