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(3)
K-3
Illustrated by
Martha Aviles.
Recent immigrant Amelia decides to wear her fiesta dress from Cuba for show-and-tell. At school she discovers that all the other show-and-tell items are in a basket, but all ends well when she demonstrates how her dress "talks" when she dances. The bilingual text and colorful illustrations nicely incorporate images from Amelia's island life.
(2)
YA
Fifteen-year-old Violet Paz, who is half Cuban American, half Polish American, feels as though she has a lot of "half talents" but nothing she's really good at. Newly recruited to the high school speech team, Violet discovers her comedic abilities, writing a funny shtick about her "Loco Family." Violet's wry narration will make readers laugh, whether or not their families are as loco as Violet's.
215 pp.
| Scholastic/Orchard
| October, 2002
|
TradeISBN 0-439-38199-1$$16.95
(2)
YA
First Person Fiction series.
The two books in this new series give narrative life to the American immigrant experience. In both novels, a thirteen-year-old protagonist records in her diary her feelings about, in Flight, leaving Cuba for Miami in 1967 or, in Mountains, leaving Haiti for New York in 2000. The excellence of the writing and the resilient outlook of both first-person fictions set a high standard for this series. [Review covers these First Person Fiction titles: Behind the Mountains and Flight to Freedom.]
Reviewer: Susan P. Bloom
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
January, 2003
64 pp.
| Chelsea
| March, 2001
|
LibraryISBN 0-7910-6104-3$$17.95
(4)
4-6
Latinos in the Limelight series.
These formulaic biographies profile well-known Latinos in business, the arts, and sports. After a chapter about the subject's childhood and early years, the books provide basic background information about his or her career. The adulatory texts are accompanied by average-quality photos. A chronology and, where appropriate, lists of accomplishments and awards are appended. Bib., ind.
111 pp.
| Chelsea
| July, 2001
|
LibraryISBN 0-7910-5883-2$$19.95
|
PaperISBN 0-7910-5884-0$$9.95
(4)
4-6
Women of Achievement series.
The latest additions to this series of biographies will be useful mainly for those writing reports. Although each offers a detailed account of the subject's life, the writing is pedestrian and the photographs often dreary. Some of the books offer more substance due mainly to the subject herself (e.g., Toni Morrison). Each book contains a chronology. Bib., ind. [Review covers these Women of Achievement titles: Cher, Toni Morrison, Mother Teresa, Oprah Winfrey, Gloria Estefan.]
64 pp.
| Chelsea
| March, 2001
|
LibraryISBN 0-7910-6108-6$$17.95
(4)
4-6
Latinos in the Limelight series.
These formulaic biographies profile well-known Latinos in business, the arts, and sports. After a chapter about the subject's childhood and early years, the books provide basic background information about his or her career. The adulatory texts are accompanied by average-quality photos. A chronology and, where appropriate, lists of accomplishments and awards are appended. Bib., ind.
(4)
4-6
Techies series.
These run-of-the mill biographies trace the personal and professional lives of three leaders in the computer technology revolution: Jobs of Apple Computer, Andreessen of Netscape, and Bezos of Amazon.com. Jobs is the best of the three with its balanced description of the visionary taskmaster; Bezos is the weakest, due to choppy writing. Bland stock photos add little to the volumes. Bib., ind.
(4)
YA
A & E Biography series.
Spanning two millennia, this unlikely trio of female notables is featured in volumes that adequately cover their lives in uninspired prose. The texts occasionally detour to include brief information boxes containing background material. The books are illustrated with serviceable photos--in both black and white and color--and reproductions. Cleopatra includes a time line; Estefan has a discography. Bib., ind.
(3)
YA
This book takes a humane look at the experiences of children who have left Castro's Cuba, from the thousands smuggled into the United States in Operation Pedro Pan in the 1960s to Elian Gonzalez. The rich narrative, which features interviews with Cuban immigrants and black-and-white photos of refugees, often in transit, emphasizes the emotional costs of freedom, particularly separation from one's family. Bib., ind.
187 pp.
| Holt
| September, 2000
|
PaperISBN 0-8050-6403-6$$15.00
(2)
YA
Judd Winick, a former cast member of MTV's "The Real World," recalls his friendship with Pedro Zamora, his HIV-positive housemate on the San Francisco show. Winick records their bantering conversations, observes Pedro's frank school lectures on safer sex, and grieves when his friend's health worsens and Pedro dies. The vigorous comic-strip art and pithy text are a good match for the highly visual, documentary style of the television program.
Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
November, 2000
88 pp.
| Atheneum
| November, 1998
|
TradeISBN 0-689-80631-0$$15.00
(3)
4-6
Black-and-white snapshots illustrate this companion to Where the Flame Trees Bloom. Stories and remembrances--some gentle, some sad or humorous--flesh out the author's childhood in a small Cuban town and demonstrate the importance of family, friends, neighbors, and teachers to a young girl. An epilogue urges readers to recognize the stories around and within themselves.