ANTONIO’S CARD

Antonio has discovered the problem of words: As much as he loves spelling new words and reading with his mother and her life-partner Leslie, some of the children in his school use words cruelly when Leslie comes to meet him after school. They think she looks like a clown or even a man. As he begins to be ashamed of Leslie, he learns anew that all people and families are different, but united by love, when Leslie shows him the painting she has created for Mother’s Day: the three of them picnicking and reading under a tree. While homosexual partners are the subtext of the story, the focus is not sexuality but individual difference. Alvarez’s illustrations are large, richly hued paintings, featuring sharp edges and simplified realistic forms. Possibly a first of its kind and a worthy leader. (Picture book. 6-9)