An unusually slight offering from an author whose work is usually so compelling.
This book features the lives of a variety of Latinos who faced life’s challenges with aplomb and in their own ways.
Celebrated Cuban-American author Engle presents the lives of some well-known Latinos such as the musician Tito Puente, labor union organizer César Chávez, and National Baseball Hall of Fame player Roberto Clemente. Others are not as familiar to children today but still left their marks on our country: Father Félix Varela, who became an advocate of equal rights for Irish immigrants; Paulina Pedroso, who openly defied racial segregation; Aída de Acosta, who flew a dirigible six months before the Wright brothers flew the first airplane; and George Meléndez Wright, first chief of the National Parks Wildlife Division and a renowned conservationist. Given his close association with Cuba rather than the United States, the inclusion of poet José Martí is puzzling. Each one of the 18 people presented is awarded a double-page spread. On one page each person is stunningly portrayed in López’s strong and vibrant style; opposite is a first-person biographical poem that provides a glimpse into its subject’s life. At the end of the book the author has included a brief biographical note about each, yet between poem and note readers may find they are left with a large information gap. A further list of other outstanding Latinos is also included.
An unusually slight offering from an author whose work is usually so compelling. (Picture book/biography/poetry. 8-12)Pub Date: March 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-8050-9876-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2016
Vivid visuals for a strong, if gnomically put, proposition.
Silhouettes and bold colors swirl in illustrations paired to a short meditation on the first word spoken in the Book of Genesis.
“Suppose,” writes poet Miller, “there was a book full only of the word, let,” giving existence to all things “fir and firmament.” Might we not find a “Let” just for each of us, that we could say and repeat “until even silent dreams had been allowed”? Younger or less reflective audiences may find the author’s trains of thought about speaking “in auto-rhyme” and “stumbl[ing] through the streets with open books / eyes crossed from too much reading” hard to unpack. But Ejaita offers accompanying scenes that will have an immediate impact on every viewer, as human and animal silhouettes join tree and other plant shapes, flowing lines of water, and sprays of stars in a dazzling and increasingly crowded dance culminating in a flurry of birds freed to fly, like the creative impulse, anywhere in our minds or world. It’s a liberating invitation, though children may respond more strongly to similar but less abstract calls in the likes of Juan Felipe Hererra’s Imagine (2018), illustrated by Lauren Castillo, Raúl Colón’s Imagine! (2018), or Tom Burlison’s Imagine That! (2020), illustrated by Sara Sanchez. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Vivid visuals for a strong, if gnomically put, proposition. (Picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2023
ISBN: 9781951836450
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Cameron Kids
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
Brilliant.
A California boy chronicles the long, difficult Covid-19 lockdown in verses that explore his confused emotions.
On the day “that started everything” and that “was also a day that ended everything,” Archie’s life is turned upside down. School is abruptly closed, his parents must work from home, and big brother Hank is ever more difficult. Archie’s asthma puts him at risk, causing his parents to take ever-greater precautions. All this, plus attending “(not real) school at home,” makes him feel more and more isolated, unseen, and muted. He has outbursts of anger and despair: “…even though we’re together / stuck inside the house / we’re not really together-together.” Archie’s imagination is captured when he hears a brief buzzing sound, senses something whipping past, and witnesses “the smallest bird ever,” and he soon finds a new purpose. With help from his family, he carefully provides nectar for his “hummingbird restaurant” and becomes especially attached to Ruby, a hummingbird with red patches, as he watches for and worries about her, especially when a wildfire rages. Some poems are lists or consist of a few lines; others flow breathlessly, offering detailed accounts of events, beautiful descriptions, or information about hummingbirds. Archie often repeats important words, phrases, or concepts in a rhythmic way that emphasizes his escalating emotions. He’s intensely loving, deeply compassionate, insightful, inventive, and expressive. Readers will gasp in wonder and empathy, cry and sometimes laugh, cheer at the upbeat conclusion, and feel every emotion that’s so powerfully expressed.
Brilliant. (author’s note) (Verse fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Feb. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9781547612741
Page Count: 274
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
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