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JUAN'S SWEET AND SPICY MEMORY

Name: JUAN'S SWEET AND SPICY MEMORY
Author: Hee Jung Yoon
ISBN: 978-1-939248-12-1

by Hee Jung Yoon ; illustrated by Christopher Corr ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2017

The disparate visual and textual mélange of misinformation renders this well-intended but off-the-mark title skippable.

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In this child’s introduction to Mexico, Juan prepares for the Cinco de Mayo festivities in his town.

A family of non–Spanish-speaking white tourists arrives, saying, “Taco? Taco?” Juan correctly guesses that they want—wait for it—tacos! As Juan shows the tourist family around, Yoon proceeds to provide facts about the Mexican culture, people, and food. Unfortunately, much of this information is either inaccurate or misleading. She claims that salsa is ground chili pepper “mixed with bell peppers, vinegar, and sugar” and asserts that Mexicans eat Tex-Mex food such as “chip-like nachos.” The simplistic declaration that the Aztecs “are the ancestors of the Mexican people,” when there were many different civilizations far older than the Aztecs such as the Olmecs, Zapotecs, and Maya, is worthy of a grade school report. The text’s awkward English phrasing also disrupts the narrative: “Juan, look at all those valuable corn.” Corr’s bright, primitive illustrations are colorful and lively but likewise misleading. Even taking into account artistic license, there is nothing to account for the anomalous placement of the Yucatán Peninsula’s Chichen Itzá and the central Mexican volcano Popocatepetl in the same landscape as the maguey plants of Tequila, Jalisco. Spanish flamenco dancers incongruously fill the Mexican plaza, and the male characters’ clothing and facial features are from all over the Caribbean, Latin America, and beyond.

The disparate visual and textual mélange of misinformation renders this well-intended but off-the-mark title skippable. (further information) (Picture book. 5-8)

Pub Date: April 1, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-939248-12-1

Page Count: 38

Publisher: TanTan

Review Posted Online: Feb. 13, 2017

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2017

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

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BUYING MITTENS

by Nankichi Niimi ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 15, 1999

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First published in 1988 in Japan, this tale does not survive its translation. A small fox experiences winter for the first time, tumbling, scampering, and running in the snow-covered world. Soon he returns to his mother complaining that his paws hurt and tingle with cold. Mother takes one of little fox’s paws and “magically turned it into the cute hand of a human child.” She sends her child off to town to buy mittens, warning her child to show only the human hand to the storekeeper. The small fox finds the town and the storekeeper, and politely asks for mittens, sticking a paw through the open doorway. In his confusion he puts forward the wrong paw; but the storekeeper, once he is sure the fox has real money, finds a pair of mittens and puts them on the fox’s paws. The fox returns home, baffled by his mother’s fear of humans. The plot has folkloric elements, but the text is wordy, sentimental, and pedestrian. Although the art can’t compensate for the text, the jacket painting holds the promise of luminous illustrations within, with a glowing white fox against of soft pearl-gray landscape. (Picture book. 5-7)

Pub Date: Oct. 15, 1999

ISBN: 0-8248-2128-7

Page Count: 40

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1999

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
GON, THE LITTLE FOX
by Nankichi Niimi ; illustrated by Genjirou Mita ; translated by Mariko Shii Gharbi

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THE SECRET CAVE

DISCOVERING LASCAUX

by Emily Arnold McCully & illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 14, 2010

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Part Hardy Boys, part archeology, this mesmerizing look at the discovery of the prehistoric cave paintings of Lascaux invites today’s readers to experience the wonder of the event. McCully has written and drawn a stunning fictionalized account based on historical records and interviews. The endpapers entice with the rendering of the maps of the caves, and soft, wide watercolor strokes capture the essence of the prehistoric art. When the action is aboveground, the realistic illustrations are her characteristic ink-and-watercolor style, but below the ground the edges soften and the images become shadowy and mysterious. The Caldecott winner gets the emotions of the secret descent for buried treasure just right, drawing readers' eyes down the tight shaft to the light of the first boy’s lantern in the large art-filled chamber. In one glorious wordless spread, the boys (and readers) are filled with awe at the revelation of the pristine art. What to do with this knowledge? The boys know just whom to trust. Budding historians will be amazed by this story of curiosity and serendipity. (author’s note, bibliography) (Picture book. 5-7)