A dazzling Yuletide remembrance.
Grandma makes tamales by the dozens to bring Christmas cheer for la familia.
In her kitchen, “loud and cramped and perfumed with delicious smells,” Grandma prepares for the task that awaits. She intends to “sell as many tamales as she can before Christmas” so she can purchase gifts for her many children and grandchildren. Inspired by his real-life grandmother’s seasonal efforts, Briseño presents a series of cozy vignettes that focus on Latine familial love, narrated by an unnamed young child. In the crisp morning, Dad sells tamales from a cooler to co-workers and friends. When the days become colder, Mom and the tías bustle around the kitchen to lend a hand. Holidays and festivities unfold. On Halloween, Grandpa greets trick-or-treaters with candies, and on Thanksgiving, la familia gathers round to feast on turkey and other favorites. Grandma stands at the center of it all, with masa and corn husks in each hand. Boasting a vibrant palette of rich, earthy colors, Sánchez’s digital artwork superbly captures the tenderness and serenity of each scene. Grandma’s tamale milestones (“150 DOZEN TAMALES,” “850 DOZEN TAMALES”) crop up in bold and all caps throughout. Soon enough, the Christmas tree comes out, and lights fill each room. When Grandma wraps up her last tamales for the season, the real significance of the holiday emerges.
A dazzling Yuletide remembrance. (author’s note, tamale recipe) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2024
ISBN: 9780593647813
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House Studio
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Not enough tricks to make this a treat.
Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.
Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned.
All the reasons why a daughter needs a mother.
Each spread features an adorable cartoon animal parent-child pair on the recto opposite a rhyming verse: “I’ll always support you in giving your all / in every endeavor, the big and the small, / and be there to catch you in case you should fall. / I hope you believe this is true.” A virtually identical book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, publishes simultaneously. Both address standing up for yourself and your values, laughing to ease troubles, being thankful, valuing friendship, persevering and dreaming big, being truthful, thinking through decisions, and being open to differences, among other topics. Though the sentiments/life lessons here and in the companion title are heartfelt and important, there are much better ways to deliver them. These books are likely to go right over children’s heads and developmental levels (especially with the rather advanced vocabulary); their parents are the more likely audience, and for them, the books provide some coaching in what kids need to hear. The two books are largely interchangeable, especially since there are so few references to mom or dad, but one spread in each book reverts to stereotype: Dad balances the two-wheeler, and mom helps with clothing and hair styles. Since the books are separate, it aids in customization for many families.
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned. (Picture book. 4-8, adult)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-6781-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
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