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Winner:

I Lived on Butterfly Hill
by Marjorie Agosín; illus. by Lee White; trans. by E. M. O’Connor
Intermediate     Atheneum     455 pp.
3/14    978-1-4169-5344-9    $16.99

Eleven-year-old Chilean girl Celeste faces upheaval when a brutal dictator rises to power, her parents go into hiding, and she is shipped off to Maine. Threads of mysticism lend an interesting element, but the book is best when rooted in reality, transporting readers with sensory-steeped settings and Celeste’s vividly evoked feelings of alienation. Black-and-white illustrations depict the turmoil but with a soft touch.

From the Fall 2014 issue of The Horn Book Guide.

Honor book:

Portraits of Hispanic American Heroes
by Juan Felipe Herrera, illus. by Raúl Colón (Dial)

Review to come.

The post Reviews of the 2015 Belpré Author Award winners appeared first on The Horn Book.

Winner:

Viva Frida
by Yuyi Morales; illus. by the author with photos by Tim O’Meara
Primary, Intermediate   Porter/Roaring Brook   40 pp.
9/14   978-1-59643-603-9   $17.99   g

There have been several books for young readers about Frida Kahlo, but none has come close to the emotional aesthetic Morales brings to her subject, as a Mexican artist herself who understands the particular landscape of Kahlo’s imagination. By selecting several of Kahlo’s recurring symbols — monkey, dog, parrot, deer, hummingbird — she achieves artistic depth and lends child appeal to a very spare, ethereal text. Morales also incorporates Señor Calavera (a figure who recurs throughout Morales’s own work), representing the dance with death Kahlo engaged in all her life. Morales initially shows Kahlo as a puppet: made from steel, polymer clay, and wool, the three-dimensional figures (photographed and digitally manipulated inside double-page-spread collages) are works of art in themselves. The illustrations are accompanied by just a few words of text in both Spanish and English (“busco / I search // Veo / I see… // Juego / I play”) that leave readers with a dreamlike impression. As we enter Kahlo’s mind, the medium and style change, and the pages are illustrated with lush acrylics, showing her winged feet carrying her across the spreads, arrows whizzing past; one eventually hits her pet deer in the foreleg. This allusion to Kahlo’s famous painting The Little Deer may be lost on most young readers, but the accompanying text (“siento / I feel”) will get the basic meaning across. Morales (Niño Wrestles the World, rev. 7/13) once again impresses us with her artistry in an ingenious tour de force. KATHLEEN T. HORNING

From the September/October 2014 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.

Honor books:

Little Roja Riding Hood
by Susan Middleton Elya; 
illus. by Susan Guevara
Primary    Putnam    32 pp.
4/14    978-0-399-24767-5    $16.99    g

Little Red rides an ATV to deliver la canasta (basket) to her ailing abuela in this hip updated version of the traditional tale. Liberally sprinkled with Spanish words and phrases, the rhyming text is fresh and funny (“‘Abue,’ he said in a high squeaky voz, / ‘I’m sorry to hear of your terrible tos’”) and often unexpected. (For example, “basket” is rhymed with “who asked it?”)  And just as clever as the quirky text are the watercolor, ink, and gouache illustrations that contain plenty of humor and multiple layers of meaning. The Three Blind Mice accompany Little Roja on her journey, while three magpies follow and call out warnings that appear in flowing ribbons that act as dialogue bubbles. Two little trickster elves make mischief throughout. But best of all is Abuela herself, shown here as an aging hippie who appears to be working on a manuscript revision in her sick bed. She doesn’t really need rescuing — she protects herself by holding up a statue of St. Jude; Little Roja joins in by throwing a pot of hot sopa at the wolf. Once the wolf is vanquished, capable Abuela discourages future intruders by installing a security sistema, while Little Roja trades in her red hood for one with tiger stripes. An inventive spin on a familiar tale, this will stand up to repeated readings and viewings. KATHLEEN T. HORNING

From the July/August 2014 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.

Green Is a Chile Pepper
by Roseanne Greenfield Thong; illus. by John Parra
Primary     Chronicle    32 pp.
4/14     978-1-4521-0203-0     $16.99
In this festive concept book, all the colors found in a Hispanic American neighborhood are described in rhyming text with frequent Spanish words, explained in detail in a glossary. The objects described, such as ristras, piñatas, and faroles, are staples of Mexican culture, but Parra’s folk art–style paintings, stuffed with entertaining details, make them universally understandable and appealing. SIENA LESLIE

From the Fall 2014 issue of The Horn Book Guide.

Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s 
Fight for Desegregation
by Duncan Tonatiuh; 
illus. by the author
Primary, Intermediate   Abrams   40 pp.
5/14   978-1-4197-1054-4   $18.95

Seven years before the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education, Sylvia Mendez and her family fought for — and won — the desegregation of schools in California. Tonatiuh, a Belpré-winning illustrator, uses a child’s viewpoint to clearly and succinctly capture the segregated reality of Mexican Americans and the little-known legal challenge that integrated schools. When the Mendez family moves from Santa Ana to Westminster only to find that their children must attend the inferior “Mexican” school for no particular reason, they first try petitions before turning to lawyers to set matters right. The straightforward narrative is well matched with the illustrations in Tonatiuh’s signature style, their two-dimensional perspective reminiscent of the Mixtec codex but collaged with paper, wood, cloth, brick, and (Photoshopped) hair to provide textural variation. This story deserves to be more widely known, and now, thanks to this book, it will be. Author’s note, photographs, glossary, bibliography, and index are appended. JONATHAN HUNT

From the July/August 2014 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.

The post Reviews of the 2015 Belpré Illustrator Award winners appeared first on The Horn Book.

Winner: Duncan Tonatiuh for Diego Rivera: His World and Ours (Abrams)
Review in The Horn Book Guide, fall 2011
The first half of the book provides background on Rivera’s life and the inspiration behind his work. Readers are then asked to imagine how he might paint subjects from life today: “Maybe Diego would paint shops at the mall… / as he painted street vendors selling flores.” The accompanying illustrations ably mimic Rivera’s style. A creative, discussion-provoking approach to art appreciation. PMC

Honor: Rafael  López for The Cazuela That the Farm Maiden Stirred; written by Samantha R. Vamos (Charlesbridge)
Review in The Horn Book Guide, fall 2011
This fresh take on the “House That Jack Built” rhyme chronicles the making of a delicious pot of arroz con leche (rice with milk). All of the farm animals, from the hen to the goat to the burro, find a way to contribute to the farm maiden’s recipe. López’s rich-hued, beautifully textured acrylic-on-grained-wood illustrations are standouts. TW

Honor: Sara Palacios for Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match / Marisol McDonald no Combina; written by Monica Brown, translated from the Spanish by Adriana Domínguez (Children’s Book Press)
Review in The Horn Book Guide, spring 2012
Spirited text in English and Spanish describes the ways the mixed-race narrator “doesn’t match,” from clothing choice to physical appearance (“My cousin Tato…says, ‘Marisol, your skin is brown like mine, but your hair is the color of carrots. You don’t match!’”). Palacios’s illustrations capture Marisol’s exuberant style and wacky fashion sense, as does Domínguez’s thoughtful Spanish translation of Brown’s text. TW

Winner: Guadalupe Garcia McCall for Under the Mesquite (Lee & Low Books)
Review in The Horn Book Guide, spring 2012
Eldest Lupita leads her seven younger siblings through the uncertainty of their mother’s cancer. Lupita endeavors to keep her Mexican American family together while attempting to reach her own goals for college and a career. First-person free verse with Spanish carefully sprinkled throughout project this young woman’s thoughts, fears, and triumphs with grace and resolve. RSS

Honor: Xavier Garza for Maximilian & the Mystery of the Guardian Angel: A Bilingual Lucha Libre Thriller (Cinco Puntos)
Not reviewed.

Honor: Margarita Engle for Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck (Holt)
Review in The Horn Book Guide, fall 2011
Several first-person narratives converge in this verse novel of the sixteenth century. Two star-crossed lovers of Cuban legend; two historical figures, a pirate and a ruthless conquistador; and a fictional slave give readers spare pieces of one overall story. An introductory list of characters provides information not immediately apparent in their titular poems; the concluding author’s note fills in historical background. BC

To commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Pura Belpré Award, ALSC and REFORMA have come up with an exciting and entertaining event at 2011 ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans. That event now as a date:

Save the Date for the 2011 Belpré Award Celebration!

Please put this in your Annual 2011 schedule and be prepared to celebrate with ALSC and REFORMA. For more information about this event and other ALA Annual happenings, check out ALSC’s program and events schedule, where you can also find a printable PDF schedule of programs that merit your attention.

These events will be updated closer to June when locations are announced. Stay tuned and get ready!