A sweet family story about building understanding across generations.
A hilarious mistranslation has a young girl fearing she’ll have to eat something unsavory.
Abuela recently moved from Cuba to live with Magaly and her mother and brother. Ever since her arrival, everyone seems happier, and their cozy apartment is always filled with wonderful aromas as Abuela prepares new and wonderful foods such as fricasé de pollo, picadillo, and arroz con leche, which quickly becomes Magaly's favorite. But when Abuela says that today she’ll be making ropa vieja, Magaly, who speaks some Spanish, is horrified. Old clothes?! Hastily, she begins hiding her favorite clothes, believing that if she doesn’t make them disappear, they’ll end up being served to her for dinner. That night, the family sits down to ropa vieja. It doesn’t taste bad, but Magaly’s still unable to finish her plate. Eventually, she learns that ropa vieja is shredded beef, so named because of its resemblance to a pile of old clothes. Everyone bursts out laughing, and Magaly’s confusion ends up bringing everyone even closer together. Spanish words are mixed in throughout. Vibrant illustrations brim with energy and movement as carrots, tomatoes, peas, and other foodstuffs careen across the pages. Both text and visuals convey sensory experiences such as smells and flavors and paint a portrait of a loving Cuban American immigrant family and their traditions.
A sweet family story about building understanding across generations. (information about other dishes with unusual names, facts about Cuba, glossary, author’s and illustrator’s notes, recipes) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 12, 2024
ISBN: 9798888590683
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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