Review by Booklist Review
Speaking and learning two languages has never been more fun than in this playful picture book. By following Sam and Maya through their neighborhood on a day out with their abuelo, young readers will learn more than 700 Spanish and English words related to food, clothes, gardening, markets, the weather, animals, and much more. Fatus (My Big Barefoot Book of Wonderful Words, 2014) creates an engaging story about the ways readers can learn from their everyday surroundings. Colorful illustrations include Spanish and English labels for objects, plants, and even magical creatures (an elf, mermaid, and vampire, to name a few), pairing words and images to make it easier for readers to learn new vocabulary. Some spreads contain a themed array of items, while others walk readers through a scene such as a cutaway of a house that shows its rooms and contents. Readers will find Sam and Maya friendly guides in understanding the world in more than one language. A similar book for early language learners is Ana Galan's No Is No, Sí Is Yes (2005).--Rodríguez, Sonia Alejandra Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-With a slight one-sentence-per-page narrative to guide readers, this bilingual word book chronicles the daily activities of the Familia Palabra and the laudably diverse residents in their community. This story is virtually identical to Fatus's My Barefoot Book of Wonderful Words (Barefoot Bks., 2014) with the exception of some minor changes and the addition of Spanish vocabulary. In this incarnation, Zanzibar the cat becomes Paco and Crunchy the croc morphs into Fresco. The bright, whimsical illustrations are the same, though a few of the individual characters have been repurposed. For example, the paperboy from Wonderful Words becomes the bike messenger in this title. In addition, items identified in the previous edition are unlabeled here-the book in braille and the origami projects depicted in the library scene. Some of the Spanish terms are not as common in Latin America as in the case of cesta de picnic being used instead of the more familiar canasta de picnic. But what makes this, and other similar word-building books, less than ideal is the fact that phonetic spellings are not included to facilitate the acquisition of a bilingual vocabulary. A monolingual English-speaking child will see the word alcantarilla (defined as "manhole" in the text, but is actually a storm drain) and probably anglicize it-al-can-ta-ril-la-instead of using the correct pronunciation: ahl-cahn-tah-REE-yah. A monolingual Spanish-speaking child would conversely see manhole and try pronouncing it mahn-hoh-leh. VERDICT When employed in conjunction with competent bilingual teachers, this book can enrich language lessons and help promote multicultural diversity awareness.-Mary Margaret Mercado, Pima County Public Library, Tucson, AZ © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
