Cuento de Luz

Fun and Fruit by Maria Teresa Barahona

FUN AND FRUIT
Written by Maria Teresa Barahona
Illustrated by Edie Pijpers
Translated by Jon Brokenbrow
(Cuento De Luz; $16.95, Ages 5-8)

 

Fun & Fruit CoverFun and Fruit is a tale about sisters Charlotte and Claire who live surrounded by magical trees which grew wonderful fruits with thousands of different colors and aromas. They devise a game in which over the course of a week, they pick a color a day, think of fruits with that color, create stories based on the fruits, and eat the fruits as snacks. On Friday the color was green, and Charlotte told her sister why pears were her favorite fruit. “When I eat them, I close my eyes and feel little sparkling stars in my mouth that make me dream.” Claire thought about grapes. “They’re little, they’re always cuddled up close together, and they remind me of the friends I always want to be with,” she said. Charlotte and Claire include their friends in their game, and all have a good time eating the healthy snacks.

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Interior artwork from Fun and Fruit by Maria Teresa Barahona with illustrations by Edie Pijpers, Cuento de Luz ©2015.

 

The artwork by Edie Pijpers is just darling and the bright, bold colors really capture the essence of the story. The page with the children making a fruit-infused milk shake had me practically salivating: the colors are so lush and the food looks scrumptious. The illustrations of the magical fruit trees and the birds with music notes are delightful, and the moon as a banana shining over a landscape of fruit put a smile on my face. The simplicity of the children’s features, which adds to the innocence of the storyline, also drew me in.

 

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Interior artwork from Fun and Fruit by Maria Teresa Barahona with illustrations by Edie Pijpers, Cuento de Luz ©2015.

 

I must mention that I feel there were lost opportunities here. With the push for diverse books and multicultural inclusion within the United States’ children’s book industry, I really wish that the characters’ Spanish names had been kept. When I’m reading a story about Spanish children living in Spain, I want to see Carlota, Clara, Emilia, and Josue, not Charlotte, Claire, Emily, or Josh. Keeping the original names would have added to the authenticity. Also, I think it would have been ideal to include Spanish words and phrases, as many parents and teachers look for opportunities to incorporate another language into children’s education. For example, when mentioning apples, it would have been opportune to say manzanas, for oranges, naranjas, for red, rojo, and so on. However, Fun and Fruit is a story that emphasizes creativity, as well as healthy eating, and is worth reading.

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Watch the book trailer by clicking here.

On a related note, another of Cuento De Luz’s titles,
Cyparissus, features incredible, whimsical artwork
by Sonja Wimmer that is worth a look.

 

– Reviewed by Rita Zobayan

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The Winter Train by Susanna Isern

The Winter Train by award winning author Susanna Isern
with illustrations by Ester Garcia

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A tale of friendship, kindness, and teamwork, can be found in The Winter Train, written by award winning author Susanna Isern with illustrations by Ester Garcia, (Cuento de Luz, November 2014; $16.95, Ages 3-5). Originally written in Spanish under the title, Tren de invierno, Jon Brokenbrow has successfully translated this beautiful story into English.

Every year, all of the animals in the Northern Forest, except for White Owl, Frog, and the fish, pack up their bags and board the Winter Train. They help each other prepare for their trip to a warmer climate in the Southern Forest before the snow hits.

Rabbit, Wolf, and Hedgehog are all on board. Wolf, Goat, and Bat have worked out their seating arrangements, and even Tortoise has managed to get to the train on time. The train chugs along, while the animals are playing games to pass the time, when Genet (a nocturnal, catlike mammal) realizes they’ve left one of their friends behind.

“We’ve forgotten Squirrel! We’ve got to go back and get her!”

“But if we go back, we could get trapped in the snow,” said Beaver, pointing to the dark clouds outside the window.

‘We can’t leave Squirrel behind. She can’t stand the cold,” said Ferret.

“Well, that’s settled then. Let’s go and find her!” said all the animals together.

In this picture book, Garcia’s illustrations show how quickly the landscape can change when autumn turns to winter, and snow covers everything. The bravery of Genet, trotting across the snowy ground to rescue her friend, Squirrel, tugs at your heartstrings. I found myself cheering the cat along on her trek.

Isern’s lyrical style of writing is both appropriate and appealing in this tender-hearted book for pre-schoolers.

“You came back to rescue me!” said Squirrel, shuddering from the cold.

But, of course the animals went back for their tiny friend. Who cares that a train can’t “turn around” or that in reality the animals would have eaten each other? Isern has managed to suspend our sense of reality in this wondrous magical picture book, which is sure to please the child in all of us.

– Reviewed by MaryAnne Locher

 

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Follow Your Heart

DorothyI’m so glad I recently broadened my book review horizons to include titles by Spanish publisher, Cuento de Luz, as I have enjoyed each and every title I’ve read so far. This publisher’s books deliver powerful messages in delightfully subtle ways.

Dorothy: A Different Kind of Friend ($16.95, Cuento de Luz, Ages 5-7) by Roberto Aliaga presents readers with a story about an unidentifiable furry animal girl who befriends a not-so-popular girl in town, named Dorothy. Dorothy is big, clumsy and very different than the others. The bully girls in town all hang out together and tease the protagonist when she hangs out with Dorothy, saying very cruel and hurtful things about her. Will those harsh words be enough to make the protagonist drop Dorothy as a friend? Read the book and you will find out for yourself.

There are so many children’s books about being bullied that it is impossible to keep up with all of them. But what sets this book apart is that the characters are unique and the message is delivered in muted tones, leaving the reader with a lot to think about. The illustrations by Mar Blanco are both colorful and adorable, highlighting the uniqueness of the characters. In the end, we must all follow our hearts, no matter what others tell us to do, and Dorothy: A Different Kind of Friend shows us the way.

– Reviewed by Debbie Glade

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For the Child in All of Us

page_1_thumb_largeAlbert Einstein once said, “I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.”

Inside My Imagination ($15.95, Cuento de Luz, Age 5-7) by Marta Arteaga is a captivating book about a girl who enters a magical paradise, all created by her own imagination. She “breathes in a story” while taking young readers through her mind and ever-changing random thoughts. Her visions are enchanting, and she tells us how they flow together making her more and more creative and giving her more and more original ideas.

The hardcover book is of the highest quality, and the delightful illustrations by Zuzanna Celej are misty and imaginative, perfectly fitting for the somewhat poetic prose.

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The true beauty of Inside My Imagination is that it encourages readers to think outside the box. It lets them know that it is perfectly okay to use their imaginations, and in fact is a wonderful thing to do. It can take them to never before explored places and send them on a path of discovery of new ideas. More importantly, it teaches them that their imagination is what gives them the freedom to be themselves.

– Reviewed by Debbie Glade

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