Book Fiesta! Celebrate Children’s Day/ Book Day – Celebremos ¡El día de los niños/El día de los libros!

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Mora, Pat. 2009. BOOK FIESTA! CELEBRATE CHILDREN’S DAY/ BOOK DAY – CELEBREMOS EL DIA DE LOS NINOS/ EL DIA DE LOS LIBROS. Ill. by Rafael Lopez. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 978-0-06-128877-7

AWARD(S)

• ALA Notable Children’s Book, 2010
• CCBC Choices, 2010
• Américas Commended List, 2010
• Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts, 2010
• Belpré Illustrator Medal Book, 2010

PLOT SUMMARY

Celebrating Children’s Day and Book Day, the text is excitedly written in both English and Spanish. The children within the book relate how they read in different places, in different languages, to various animals, and while riding in planes, cars, trains, hot-air balloons, and submarines. Each page depicts an adventure with books. The book ends with children reading in bed, yet flying off to faraway places while reading books.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Pat Mora uses simple language to share the excitement of reading books in correlation to April 30^th’s Children’s Day and Book Day. She engages both English and Spanish readers with the text written in both languages. In her English text, she intertwines some Spanish phrases to lend authenticity to the original beginning of Children’s Day/ Book Day. In the back of the book, Mora includes a letter explaining the origin of Children’s Day/ Book Day and offers suggestions for celebrating Children’s Day/ Book Day.

Using vibrantly colored acrylic illustrations, Rafael Lopez engages multicultural children in the celebration of reading. His style shows wide-eyed children, adults, animals, and even the moon, absorbed in reading in various places. The children’s cherub faces beam with smiles showing the enjoyment of celebrating books and their day. According to Lopez’s blog ( http://rafaellopezbooks.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2010-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2011-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=12 ) he states, “The texture of the whale's skin, the moon and the clouds is inspired by the well worn walls in the Mexican town where I live.” He utilizes vibrant full-page illustrations to tell the story and even adds a twist by having the reader turn the book 90 degrees to view one page. His powerful paintings pull children into the joy of the book and reading.

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

• SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL – “This lively selection will motivate and excite children about the adventures they can go on through reading.”
• COOPERATIVE CHILDREN’S BOOK CENTER CHOICES – “The power of books to transport readers on marvelous journeys is also undeniable.”
• KIRKUS REVIEWS – “The cheery and effortless dual English/Spanish text instills a festival atmosphere brilliantly expressed in Lopez's luminous full-page montages of a world of reading opportunities.”

CONNECTIONS

• Participate in community Children’s Day/ Book Day on April 30^th or initiate a celebration using suggestions from the ALA website for El día de los niños/El día de los libros - http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/initiatives/diadelosninos/index.cfm.
• Read other books about the love of books and reading:
• WILD ABOUT READING by Judy Sierra and Marc Brown, ISBN 978-0375825385
• BORN TO READ by Judy Sierra and Marc Brown, ISBN 0375846875
• THE BEST PLACE TO READ by Debbie Bertram and Susan Bloom, ISBN 978-0375837579
• READ ANYTHING GOOD LATELY? By Susan Allen and Jane Lindaman, ISBN 978-0822564706
• Listen to the tune that goes with Pat Mora’s song “Día” at her website: http://www.patmora.com/dia/dia_song.htm.
• Allow students to brainstorm different places they’ve read or could read. Then have them illustrate their own class book, adding text appropriate to the age of the students.