bookshelf

LUKA'S QUILT

Name: LUKA'S QUILT
Author: Georgia Guback
ISBN: 0-688-12154-3

by Georgia Guback & illustrated by Georgia Guback ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 1994

bookshelf

Delighted that ``Tutu'' (``that's Hawaiian for grandmother'') is making her a quilt, Luka imagines the splendid colors of the flowers Tutu describes. When the beautifully decorated quilt turns out to be simply green and white, the little girl is bitterly disappointed. Tutu's explanation (``Two colors. It's our Island tradition. You chose green, remember?'') is no comfort, and a rift opens between her and the grandmother, who cares for her while her parents are at work. Then Tutu suggests ``a truce,'' and on a Lei Day outing agrees that Luka may make a multicolored lei even though it isn't traditional. Later, this gives Tutu the idea of making a fabric lei in many colors to lay over Luka's quilt. There are plenty of bright island colors in Guback's cheerful collages of painted figures and festive floral patterns. Attractively realized setting; disarming model of conflict resolution; unusually appealing story. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: May 1, 1994

ISBN: 0-688-12154-3

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1994

Categories:

CHILDREN'S FAMILY

bookshelf

PLÁTANOS ARE LOVE

by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris ; illustrated by Mariyah Rahman ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 11, 2023

A cozy story for the stomach and the soul.

bookshelf

An ode to a beloved comfort food is also a love letter to family ties.

Esme, a dark brown–skinned child with long curly brown hair, and Abuela, who also has dark brown skin, visit the market to buy plátanos. When Abuela reminds Esme that plátanos are love, the young narrator muses, “I thought they were food. But Abuela says they feed us in more ways than one.” Esme receives a brief history lesson during the shopping trip, learning that their ancestors picked plátanos from trees long ago. Esme helps Abuela prepare several mouthwatering plátano dishes and hears more of their family history as they cook. Esme’s ancestors were forbidden from reading, writing, and drawing, so they memorized them and secretly passed the recipes down through generations. The tasty dishes of tostones y patacones, tajadas y maduros, and mangú y fufú are prepared with love and shared with friends and family. Esme writes the recipes down in a notebook titled “Nuestra Familia’s Cookbook” and notes that “Abuela says plátanos are our past. I say plátanos are our present. And with this book, plátanos will always be our future.” Text that incorporates unitalicized Spanish throughout and warm and inviting illustrations convey affection for both food and family and will leave readers hungry for plátanos. Characters throughout the book read as Afro-Latine. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A cozy story for the stomach and the soul. (glossary, recipes) (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: April 11, 2023

ISBN: 9781665902731

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Atheneum

Review Posted Online: Jan. 24, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S FAMILY

- BOOK REVIEW
THE BRONX IS MY HOME
by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris ; illustrated by Kim Holt

bookshelf

BIG PAPA AND THE TIME MACHINE

by Daniel Bernstrom ; illustrated by Shane W. Evans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 14, 2020

This beautiful celebration of the importance of family will also spur young readers to reflect on history.

bookshelf

An African American grandfather and grandson take a time-traveling journey through U.S. history in this mystical and heartwarming picture book.

When his grandson announces that he does not want to go to school, Big Papa takes action. Sweeping him up in his time machine (which looks a lot like a 1950s-era automobile), the pair visit Little Rock and Chicago in the ’40s through the ’80s, the places where Big Papa grew to manhood. In recounting his struggles with dangerous jobs and working conditions and his trepidation at marriage and impending fatherhood, Big Papa gives his grandson a lesson in developing bravery while also teaching him the importance of getting an education. Love and reverence for history and family radiate from Bernstorm’s words. Backmatter indicates that the story is inspired by the author’s family, and he couldn’t have penned a more moving testament to their dignity and endurance. Evans’ whimsical, sunny-hued illustrations have a dreamlike quality that nicely maintains balance between the fantasy of time travel and the heaviness of some of the subject matter. This is particularly evident in the vignette set in the Arkansas cotton fields, where a fellow African American tells Big Papa to give up school because “work, that’s all you ever gonna do.”

This beautiful celebration of the importance of family will also spur young readers to reflect on history. (Picture book. 4-8)