A fictional narrator, Francisco, tells about life on his Texas ranch, and passes along the stories his grandfather told him about the vaqueros, the Mexican cowboys. Snippets of information—on Francisco's family history, changes in ranching over the centuries, the equipment used, and the origins of some words and traditions—are presented along with black-and-white archival photographs. It's a hodgepodge of interesting facts, although Munson glosses over history with some alarming results: CortÇs is described simply as an explorer who raised cattle, ``the natives in Mexico worked for the Spanish leaders,'' and ``Catholic priests came from Spain to Mexico to teach religion to the natives.'' While the Mexican influence on the origins of the cowboy is neglected, this book doesn't tend to the oversight. (b&w photos, not seen, glossary, bibliography) (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1997
ISBN: 1-57168-142-6
Page Count: 66
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1996
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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A charming, true story about the encounter between the boy who would become chancellor at the University of California at Riverside and a librarian in Iowa. Tom†s Rivera, child of migrant laborers, picks crops in Iowa in the summer and Texas in the winter, traveling from place to place in a worn old car. When he is not helping in the fields, Tom†s likes to hear Papa Grande's stories, which he knows by heart. Papa Grande sends him to the library downtown for new stories, but Tom†s finds the building intimidating. The librarian welcomes him, inviting him in for a cool drink of water and a book. Tom†s reads until the library closes, and leaves with books checked out on the librarian's own card. For the rest of the summer, he shares books and stories with his family, and teaches the librarian some Spanish. At the end of the season, there are big hugs and a gift exchange: sweet bread from Tom†s's mother and a shiny new book from the librarianto keep. Col¢n's dreamy illustrations capture the brief friendship and its life-altering effects in soft earth tones, using round sculptured shapes that often depict the boy right in the middle of whatever story realm he's entered. (Picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-679-80401-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1997
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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Trickling, bubbling, swirling, rushing, a river flows down from its mountain beginnings, past peaceful country and bustling city on its way to the sea. Hooper (The Drop in My Drink, 1998, etc.) artfully evokes the water’s changing character as it transforms from “milky-cold / rattling-bold” to a wide, slow “sliding past mudflats / looping through marshes” to the end of its journey. Willey, best known for illustrating Geraldine McCaughrean’s spectacular folk-tale collections, contributes finely detailed scenes crafted in shimmering, intricate blues and greens, capturing mountain’s chill, the bucolic serenity of passing pastures, and a sense of mystery in the water’s shadowy depths. Though Hooper refers to “the cans and cartons / and bits of old wood” being swept along, there’s no direct conservation agenda here (for that, see Debby Atwell’s River, 1999), just appreciation for the river’s beauty and being. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-7636-0792-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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