Book Buds Kidlit Reviews

Ah, zee French, eet ees so hard!

Leo le Chat Goes to School
by Opal Dunn; illustrated by Cathy Gale

I live next door to the Lycee Francais, and I'm forever bumping into towheads in navy uniforms, trailing their thin, effortlessly glamorous Moms. They gather in the nearby park like exotic birds, pecking at healthy snacks and chittering in rapid French.

They only serve to remind me of how my mother discouraged me from learning that language ("Spanish is more useful, you can talk to the cleaning lady") until I made a feeble stab at it in college.

By then it was too late; years of resolute resistance to all things Spanish translated into a tin ear for the language of romance, of Proust, of the Impressionists and all those fancy menus. In three trips there, I spoke about as well as Marcel Marceau--that is to say, I'm fluent in the language of manic hand gestures and panicked facial expressions.

Fortunately, this little book of first words and phrases comes with a glossary and pronunciation guide in back. Leo only speaks French, but you can lift little flaps to translate what he says. You have to tell him not to sit on the table or help him find his ball, whatever. The usual cute stuff. In French. And there's a series of these, by the way.

My son's learning Hebrew, however, and at age four is already correcting my pronunciation. That's okay, if I ever get back to Israel, I'll just brush up on my head-scratching and confused looks--the universal language of tourists.

Rating: *\*\

Animals with attitude

Cool Cats Counting

by Sherry Shahan; illustrated by Paula Barragan

Each page features different animals, a different number and a different dance. Dance? You bet. It’s salsa time!

Imagine Pablo Picasso stumbling into a Latin discotheque filled with barnyard animals, and you’ll have a feel for this finger-snapping counting book. The animals, in their florid dresses, zoot suits and even hip-hop outfits, look off-kilter and flattened, somewhat like late Cubist renderings, only in a jalapeno-hot palette.

And they tango, rumba and cha-cha their way through syncopated verses up to the number 10 in both English and Spanish:

Eight rats
Spin and snap
Rat-a-tat-tat
HIGH JINKS!
Ocho Ratas

Though the press packet talks obligingly about multicultural blah-blah-blah, it’s okay to buy this for its foot-tapping fun.

Rating: *\*\

Exploring the Middle Kingdom

Beyond the Great Mountains: A Visual Poem About China

by Ed Young

This poem started life on a roll of paper towels; Young scribbled a rough draft in a washroom and kept it for 20 years. His press release makes him sound like something of a pack rat, squirreling away scraps that he recycles in his torn paper collages.

I don’t envy his family living with that clutter, but the result is an elegant tribute to his native country. The book opens vertically the way Chinese was meant to be read, with the English verses printed on the edges with the pages staggered, so you can read the whole poem at once.

Inside, each collage first shows us an understated, elegant scene from nature, be it a mist-covered mountain or a sprig of wheat. But each one’s also a clever pictogram of a Chinese character.

Written Chinese is a pictorial language and this book shows how some of the characters evolved (a table in the back compares ancient and modern characters).

That’s not to say East trumps West. Young blends both in perfect Taoist harmony, and credits Matisse’s paper collages for his inspiration. The famous Expressionist’s influence can be found in the marriage of unusual colors – bold turquoises and subdued browns, flamingo and speckled gray – and in achieving a high emotional impact with just a few, lean strokes.

This instantly became one of my favorite children’s books of the year, though my three-year-old is far too young for its subtleties. Save this exploration of the Middle Kingdom for slightly older children, maybe ages 6 and up.

Rating: *\*\*\*\

Two Grimm tales, updated

Hansel and Gretel / Hansel y Gretel

Adaptation by Elisabet Areya; illustrated by Cristina Losantos

The Musicians of Bremen / los Musicos de Bremer

Adaptation by Roser Ros; illustrated by Pep Montserrat

These two are the latest offerings in a bilingual series that retells children’s classics, both published in Catalan before making it to our shores.

Hansel and Gretel is of course the unforgettable tale of two abandoned children who make their way to a witch’s gingerbread cottage. The story seemed choppy, as if some of the story’s flow either didn’t translate well or was truncated to make room for the Spanish version.

The Musicians of Bremen fared better, and resounds with the barking, braying and caterwauling of various animals tossed out by their fickle owners after a lifetime of service. Talk about age discrimination – I know people who’d sympathize. The cast-off critters decide to head for Bremen to join its famous band, but settle into a cozy cabin after their cacophony scares off some bandits.

As for the art, the Bremen book’s figures are blocky and drawn in sweeping strokes of warm, earthy pastels, as if pulled from South American native art.

H&G are gaunt figures, lost in a dark, looming landscape straight out of a graphic novel in a style reminiscent of 1930s comics with an added dash of expressionist gloom, like Popeye or Mutt and Jeff crossed with the Cabinet of Doctor Caligieri.

Rating: *\*\

Bad English

Mis Abuelos Y Yo: My Grandparents and Me

by Samuel Caraballo; illustrated by D. Nina Cruz

The trouble with bilingual poems for kids is that the English language often comes off looking like the hulking fat kid who stumbles and farts his way to class clownhood. In this ode to a boy's beloved Puerto Rican grandparents, the Spanish verses fairly dance to its easy rhythms and seamless rhymes. The translation, however, plods wincingly:

On cool nights, under the stars,
we take pictures of cruise-liners
and admire all of the cars
that arrive on big freighters.

There's no real story here, just a sugary paean to some pretty cool grandparents that leaves a pleasant enough aftertaste. Cruz' watercolors add no little narrative extras, they just do their job and go home.

Rating: *\*\

Father's day

Waiting for Papa / Esperando a Papa

by Rene Colato Lainez; illustrations by Anthony Accardo

Eight-year-old Beto is an immigrant Everyboy, tempest toss'd onto our shores after civil war and a fire rob his Salvadoran parents of jobs and a home. But his papa doesn't get a visa, and must remain behind while Beto's mama works in a sweatshop and Beto dreams of a reunion.

Hard work and hope keep this family going until Beto gets his wish, and therein lies a message that transcends the story no matter how many times and in how many ways it's told. Lainez avoids politically correct sandtraps to make clear that Beto's suffering isn't just a Latino thing, and therefore his hard-earned triumph is one we can all share.

Note: bilingual

Rating: *\*\*\

Carving a niche

The Santero's Miracle

by Rudolfo Anaya; illustrations by Amy Cordova
Spanish translation by Enrique Lamadrid

Don Jacobo is teaching his visiting 10-year-old grandson how to be a santero, a carver of saint statues, just like him. Christmas is coming and the snowfall has made the roads impassable. With a gravely ill neighbor to worry about and the possibility the snow will keep their family from joining them, Don Jacobo, his wife and grandson hope for a miracle.

That miracle comes on Christmas Eve, as the statue of San Isidro he's carved comes to life and clears the roads. When Don Jacobo discovers his statue was responsible, he promptly offers a thankful prayer to San Isidro before joining his family in the Christmas festivities.

This story of faith and hope is captivating and offers a peek into the Chicano culture. The brightly-colored, stylized illustrations compliment the story and bring the warm desert colors of New Mexico to life.

Each page is divided into two columns – for English and Spanish. A glossary in the back defines Spanish words used in the story such as “biscochitos” (Christmas sugar cookies). What a wonderful teaching tool for both English- and Spanish-speakers.

Rating: *\*\*\

Reviewed by Dawn Mena