Little Night

Lyrical prose (in Spanish and English) and vivid mixed media illustrations describe one woman’s journey to a new country, the difficulties, and the power of libraries to transform: “We are stories. We are two languages. We are lucha…We are hope.” In a concluding piece, the author/illustrator describes her story and provides a list of the influential books she read during this period of her life. The gorgeous book is also available in a Spanish edition, Soñadores (opens in a new window).

What’s an old woman to do when a skeleton comes to visit? Keep him waiting, of course, while busy doing things from 1 to 10, culminating in a festive birthday celebration. Lively language and illustrations make this original tale memorable.

Señor Calvera is back! This time, he is looking forward to Grandma Beetle’s birthday party — but he can’t figure out what gift to give her. He consults with Zelmiro the Ghost and chooses one gift for every letter of the alphabet: acordéon, bigotes, cosquillas (accordian, moustaches, and tickles). It isn’t until he reaches the letter Z, however, that Señor Calvera finds the best gift of all for Grandma Beetle.

Niño, the Boy, clad in underwear, dons the traditional mask of luchadores to cleverly beat opponents from Mexican lore. Spanish words are included in the bold, colorful design of this appealing book with its surprise ending. End pages provide pronunciation and information on the Spanish language.

Niño is back and is hard to defeat – except when the horrible little girls don’t play by the rules! Almost surreal illustrations add humor and surprise as they roll across the pages to a cozy conclusion. Spanish and English are used throughout for a vivacious romp.

Mixed media illustrations evoke artist Frida Kahlo and lyrical language is used to suggest her life. Rather than a biography, this homage to art and an artist is visually stunning and will likely generate interest in many topics. An afterward about Frida in Spanish and English culminates the presentation.