Carmen Tafolla

Celi starts at a new middle school and is nervous. As the year goes on she is able to connect with friends and that support is invaluable. As a Chicana, she finds that her history, culture, language, are not valued or present in the curriculum or life at school. Through her friendships and some teachers, she is nutured to write and use her voice to speak out & speak up. Her gramma is a force in her life. Her dad has been deported and the family misses him. The book is set in the 2019-2020 school year and covers the impact of COVID, the killing of George Floyd, and discrimination against immigrants & migrants.
A powerful, quick read that celebrates culture, friendships, and family (whatever that might look like).… (altro)

Two kids get paletas from the paleta cart and think of all the things they can do with them. They could draw on the ground, they could give themselves a mustache, but they decide the best thing to do is to eat them.

Fairly simple, but lovely colorful drawings. There are enough Spanish words to provide a sense of specificity but not so many that I, a person who does not know any Spanish, couldn’t easily read it. My niece was not terribly into it yet but we’re going to get paletas soon so hopefully that will change.… (altro)