Picture Book - We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorell

A Seibert Honor Book
Illustrated by Frank Lessac

2018 Charlesbridge

HC $17.99

32 thick pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.28 - 671 ratings

My rating:  5
Endpapers:  Deep, luscious dark purple/eggplant

1^st line/s:  "Cherokee people say otsaliheligs (oh-jah-LEE-gah/we are grateful) to express gratitude.  It is a reminder to celebrate our blessings and reflect on struggles - daily, throughout the year, and across the seasons."

My comments: This book is GORGEOUS.  It details the lives of the Cherokee Nation through the seasons, giving the Cherokee words (and pronunciations right on the page, hooray!!), and the simple writing is beautiful.  You close the book with a good feeling, and you want to SHARE! I want to put some of these illustrations on my walls!

Goodreads:  A look at modern Native American life as told by a citizen of the Cherokee Nation
          The word otsaliheliga (oh-jah-LEE-hay-lee-gah) is used by members of the Cherokee Nation to express gratitude. Beginning in the fall with the new year and ending in summer, follow a full Cherokee year of celebrations and experiences. 
          Appended with a glossary and the complete Cherokee syllabary, originally created by Sequoyah.

Picture Book Biography - Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpre by Anika Aldamuy Denise

Illustrated by Paola Escobar

2019, Harper Collins

HC $17.99

32pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.42 - 790 ratings

My rating:  5
Endpapers:  These are the BEST - Candles, Daisies, Mouse groom and Cockroach bride from her stories, books, all on page sage green..
..

1^st line/s:  "It is 1921.  Pura Teresa Belpre leaves her home in San Juan for a visit to Nueva York."

My comments: Pura Belpre, whose name I know because of the awards given yearly in her memory, moved from Puerto Rico to New York City when she was 22 years old. Speaking three languages - Spanish, English, and French - she was hired to work in the library. When she realized there were no book in Spanish, and no stories like the ones she'd always heard her grandmother tell, she began to share the stories during storytime, along with puppets she made. Wonderful story. I particularly like the folky illustrations, I'd love to have some fabric that looks like the endpapers!

Goodreads:  Follow la vida y legado of Pura Belpré, the first Puerto Rican librarian in New York City.
          When she came to America in 1921, Pura carried the cuentos folklóricos of her Puerto Rican homeland. Finding a new home at the New York Public Library as a bilingual assistant, she turned her popular stories into libros and spread story seeds across the land. Today, these seeds have grown into a lush landscape as generations of children and cuentistas continue to share her stories and celebrate Pura’s legacy.
          This portrait of the influential librarian, author, and puppeteer reminds us of the power of storytelling and the extraordinary woman who opened doors and championed bilingual literature.

Picture Book - Time to Pray by Maha Addasi

Illustrated by Ned Gannon

2010, Boyds Mill Press, Honesdale, PA

HC $17/95

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  .10 - 122 ratings

My rating:  4.5

1^st line/s:  "In the darkness, green lights winked at me from the minaret of the nearby mosque.  I heard the voice of the muezzin calling, 'Come to pray, come to pray.'  It was my first night at Grandma's house."

My comments:  Young Yasmin goes to visit her grandmother in a Middle eastern country (doesn't say which one). It looks like she goes all by herself!   Impressive....  She hears the call to prayer five times a day, and her grandmother teaches her all about the different prayers and rituals surrounding them, makes her a "proper" outfit for praying, and takes her to the mosque.  Each double-page spread includes a page of English text and the Arabic translation.  When she returns home (to America, I'm guessing - or maybe Canada), she shares her new knowledge with her parents and feels continually connected to her grandmother when she looks at the miniature mosque that Teta sent home with her.  There's an explanation of the five praryer times at the end of the book.  The illustrations are gorgeous - no white at all.  One of our  visiting Muslim families, when returning the book, told me they've taken this book out several times for their 4 and 6-year-old kids and really enjoy it.

Goodreads:  Yasmin is visiting her grandmother, who lives in a country somewhere in the Middle East. On her first night, she's wakened by the muezzin at the nearby mosque calling the faithful to prayer, and Yasmin watches from her bed as her grandmother prepares to pray. A visit with Grandmother is always special, but this time it is even more so. Her grandmother makes Yasmin prayer clothes, buys her a prayer rug, and teaches her the five prayers that Muslims perform over the course of a day. When it's time for Yasmin to board a plane and return home, her grandmother gives her a present that her granddaughter opens when she arrives: a prayer clock in the shape of a mosque, with an alarm that sounds like a muezzin calling the faithful to prayer. Maha Addasi's warm and endearing story is richly illustrated by Ned Gannon. Features a text in English and Arabic, and includes an author's note and glossary.

PICTURE BOOK - Maya's Blanket / La Manta de Maya by Monica Brown

Illustrated by David Diaz

2015 Children's Book Press (Lee & Low Books\
$17.95 HC
24 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.1 - 124 ratings

My rating: 5

Endpapers:  Dark aqua fabric with "stitched" purple butterflies

Illustrations:  Bright and dark, completely filling the page with no white!  Heaven!

1^st line/s: "Little Maya Morales had a special manta that she loved very much."

My comments:  Another extra-special picture book to love.  And when it starts out with a quilt (or a blanket or manta in this case) made by a child's loving grandmother (abuelita), is bilingual, and is also illustrated by the incredible David Diaz....well, need I say more?  The rich illustrations that spread completely across the page from edge to edge in deep purples, greens, aquas, are wonderful.  The story, based on the Jewish folktale about Joseph and his overcoat, if great fun with repetition that isn't boring.  And in these days of recycling, re-purposing, and DIY, this "hidden" theme takes on new importance. Two thumbs up!

Goodreads:  Little Maya has a special blanket that Grandma stitched with her own two hands. As Maya grows, her blanket becomes worn and frayed, so with Grandma s help, Maya makes it into a dress. Over time the dress is made into a skirt, a shawl, a scarf, a hair ribbon, and finally, a bookmark. Each item has special, magical, meaning for Maya; it animates her adventures, protects her, or helps her in some way. But when Maya loses her bookmark, she preserves her memories by creating a book about her adventures and love of these items. When Maya grows up, she shares her book Maya s Blanket/La manta de Maya with her own little daughter while snuggled under her own special blanket. Inspired by the traditional Yiddish folk song Hob Ikh Mir a Mantl ( I Had a Little Coat ), this delightful bilingual picture book puts a child-focused, Latino spin on the tale of an item that is made into smaller and smaller items. Maya s Blanket/La manta de Maya charmingly brings to life this celebration creativity, recycling, and enduring family love."

POETRY PICTURE BOOK - Flutter & Hum by Julie Paschkis

Aleteoy y Zumbido: Poemas de Animales
Illustrated by the author

2015, Henry Holt & Co.

HC &$17.99

32 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 4.03

My rating:  5

Endpapers: Green

Title Page Single page, decorated with animals from the poems

My comments:  Ah, Julie Paschkis.  One of my all-time favorite illustrators.  And in this gorgeous picture book, she wrote all the poems, too - in two languages!  Some of them just sang out to me.  Others didn't.  She wrote them first in Spanish, then translated to English.  Her illustrations are luscious.  A feast for the eyes.  The few poems that weren't fives for me sounded GREAT in Spanish, even though I couldn't understand a word!

Goodreads:  All sorts of animals flutter and hum, dance and stretch, and slither and leap their way through this joyful collection of poems in English and Spanish. Julie Paschkis's poems and art sing in both languages, bringing out the beauty and playfulness of the animal world.

Snake
Slithering
through
the grass
the sinuous snake
is writing
a slippery poem
with his body.
But his alphabet is
too simple.
He only knows
one letter:
sssssssssss.

Crow
On this gray day
on the gray street
the black crow caws.

He hops,
        stops,
          and stares
at a yellow umbrella --
the only sun shining
today.

Owl
The moon is a lantern
in the branches.
A shimmer.

A shadow whistles
through the grass.
A whisper.

Out of the darkness
an owl hoots.
An echo.

The night train
is leaving.

Beautiful Yetta, the Yiddish Chicken - Daniel Pinkwater

Illustrated by Jill Pinkwater
Feiwel and Friends (McMillan), 2010
32 pages
$16.99
Rating: 4.5
Endpapers: azure

Mr. Flegelman is taking his organic chickens to the city (which happens to be Brooklyn) to be sold. "The truck pulls up in front of Phil's Poultry World, and with a tear in his eye, Mr. Flegelman begins to unload the crates."

And now, the fun starts. When Mr. F. speaks, his words, "Good-bye, my dear chickens," appears in a talking cloud above his head. Then we see the line written in Hebrew and then the phonetic pronounciations of the Hebrew words. COOL!

Well, Yetta the chicken breaks free and takes off into the streets of Brooklyn. Freedom! Each time she speaks to herself, we can see the translations and pronounciation. Of course the pigeons she meet can only speak English...and they're mean. But when Yetta saves a bright green parrot from a cat, she is adopted by a flock of Brooklyn's wild parrots - and they speak Spanish! So everything they say is translated from Spanish, including the pronounciations!

Happy, happy ending to a very clever story. And there's an explanation of the Hebrew alphabet at the end of the book.

Sonia Sotomayor: A Judge Grows in the Bronx - Jonah Winter

Illustrated by Edel Rodriguez
Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2009
$16.99
32 pages
Rating: 4.5
For: grades 1-4
Endpapers: Yellow with white flowering vines
Back - author's note

This is a beautifully written picture book biography that introduces our newest supreme court justice to the world. It tells of her roots in poverty in the south Bronx and of the strong, loving mother who did everything in her power to feed, nurture, and educate her children. She instilled in her daughter a passion for learning, for success, to be and do her very best. She got into Princeton. I'm guessing a good part of her life might have been lonely - but she was proud to be Latino and proved that just because she was not a white male she could more-than succeed. Her story is one to be shared with every kid in our country.

Thanks, Johan Winter, for this fascinating peek at Sonia Sotomayor's childhood.

An added plus - the entire book is translated into Spanish on each page. Excellent!

The illustrations are not overpowering, they're gentle pen and ink, then colored, and enhance the story beautifully. I love the picture of her looking out her Princeton dorm window at a cricket in a tree.

Super book.

Gathering the Sun - Alma Flor Ada

Poetry
An Alphabet in Spanish and English
English translation by Rosa Zubizarreta
Illustrated by Simon Silva
Lothrop Lee & Shepard, 1997
(4.1/590L/K-2)
40 pgs.
Endpapers: Bright Orange

26 "small" poems describing the life of a Mexican farm worker. The illustrations are just fabulous - edge to edge - with the word in bordered boxes. The book flap calls them "sun drenched". They are! The dark cover doesn't suit OR give enough credit to the illustrations inside. Spanish first, then English.

Orgullo = Pride
Proud of my family
proud of my language
. . . . culture
. . . . people
. . .being who I am

Tomates = Tomatoes
Fresh tomato
in a salad,
in the salsa,
in enchiladas
Red tomato
in the kitchen,
in the little tacos
my godmother loves to make.

Dhegdheer, A Scary Somali Folktale - Marian A. Hassan

Illustrated by Betsy Bowen
Minnesota Humanities Commission/ Somali Bilingual Book Project
2007
Rating: 4
Endpapers: dark purple

The illustrations are painted with gouache on black, with dark color covering the entire page. Mmmmmm. They go perfectly with this scary story.

"Once upon a time, a fierce cannibal named Dhegdheer roamed the Hargega Valley in Somalia. Her horrific ways cursed a land once green and lush, turning it into a desert, a crumbling dust. The animals grew thin and the rain went away for a very long time."

A scary "boogeyman" tale with a satisfying ending. Dhegdheer is a female with a daughter - and her daughter is as good as Dhegdheer is evil. Very evil. A cannibal.

Told in the right way, compared to tales from America including urban legends, this story is a great starting point for questions (what is the habitat and location of Somalia?) and discussion. I do, however, wish there was a pronounciation guide!

A Gift for Abuelita - Nancy Luenn

Celebrating the Day of the Dead
(Un regalo para Abuelita En celebracion del Dia de los Muertos)
Illustrated by Robert Chapman
Rising Moon, 1998
32 Pages
Rating: 4/5 Illustrations
Endpapers: The cemetery, close up

Oh, the illustrations in this book! So different! I tried to guess how they were made before finding out. Thoughtfully - and thankfully - Mr. Chapman gave an excellent description of his process: CAST PAPER. He creates a mold using a wooden frame where he forms the picture in many layers using wood, cardboards, and heavy papers. He then creates the page by applying a thin layer of wet paper pulp. When dry and uncast, he paints and adds thread, twine, beads, etc. I would LOVE to see (and touch...) the actual work!

The story, told in English and Spanish, is the personal story of a young girl whose beloved abuelita (grandmother) has recently died. We hear of the offerings (ofrenda) that her family is making for previously deceased loved ones for the Day of the Dead. We're with them when they clean the graves and picnic at the cemetery. And we share Rosita's joy when she finally feels her abuelita's presence.

Book Fiesta - Pat Mora

Celebrate Children's Day/Book Day
Celebremos El dia de los ninos/El dia de los libros
Illustrated by Rafael Lopez
2009
Rating: 5 for the Illustrations alone!
$17.99
Endpapers: Wow. Front: Sleeping on a Cloud, Waking on a moon, sun is rising....COLOR!
Back: Closer-up, moon smiling down at boy reading on cloud, nighttime's coming....

This book celebrates reading. It celebrates books. It celebrates story. And it celebrates family. It covers the world. It shows the southwest strongly (love it!). It rhymes. It's written in English and in Spanish. It's colorful.

"We read libros together in cars/ and planes/ and trains. We read to our puppies and kittens, and to lizards in our yard./We read riding an elephant/or sailing with a whale./ We read in a long submarine/ or floating in a hot-air balloon./ Then, snug in our beds, we read to the moon/ and fly away in our books. Toon! Toon!"

I want to have a Book Fiesta in my classroom....in my school.....NEXT YEAR! At the back of the book Pat Mora give information and many suggestions to celebrate and annual "Dia" Children & Books Day. Take her up on it!

Wiil Waal - Kathleen Moriarty

A Somali Folk Tale
Illustrator: Amin Amir
Somali Translation - Jamal Adam
Published: 2007
Rating: 3.5
398.2 M824W
Endpapers: Blue

This is one of a few produced by the Somali Bilingual Book Project of the Minnesota Humanities Center (www.minnesotahumanities.org) . You can go there to download free online resources for use in an educational setting.

Edge of page illustrations, text usually in the sky - left page English, right page Somali.

DO YOU THINK THIS TALE IS TRUE?
Ma Waxay kula tahay in sheeko xariiradaani run tahay?

Pretty cool!

This is the story of how Sultan Wiil Waal was looking for a wise man to be his match -- and discovered that the only one to figure out his riddle was a clever young woman. The riddle: "Bring me the part of one of your sheep that symbolizes what can divide people or unite them as one."

Note: GULLET needs to be understood fully befoe reading aloud.