Reviewed by: Sonia Alejandra Rodriguez
Review Source: Latinxs in Kid Lit
Book Author: Jorge Argueta
Five year old Luna Lunita Lunera fears that she will meet monsters on her first day of school. Her adoring parents remind her that she is a big girl now, bigger than the moon, and that there is nothing to fear. She finds the courage she needs to get to school but decides that maybe school is not such a good idea after all. Again, her parents encourage her to find her big girl strength and take her to school. While there, Luna is still not convinced that there are no monsters at her school and hides under a table. Her fellow classmates look for her and ask her to come out and play. Luna joins them in all the singing and coloring and decides that maybe school is not so bad. At pick up, she tells her parents that there were no monsters at school and that tomorrow she will be bigger and stronger than the moon!
Author Jorge Argueta and illustrator Elizabeth Gomez give life to the most adorable character in Latin@ children’s literature. Together they have created an encouraging and loving story about a child’s fears about her first day of school. One of the fascinating aspects of this book is the multiple ways that Luna’s story is told. Because it’s a bilingual book, something that is very common among Latin@ children’s books, the story is told is Spanish and English. Simultaneously, Gomez’s illustration present an additional storyline–the “monster’s” first day of school. Gomez’s illustrations suggest that there is indeed a monster at school and that it is also afraid of its first day of school. Continue reading.
Moony Luna / Luna, Lunita Lunera by Jorge Argueta
on 2005
Genres: Bilingual, Family, School
Pages: 31
Reading Level: Grade K, Grades 1-2, Grades 3-5
ISBN: 9780892392056
Review Source: Latinx in Kid Lit
Also by this author: Salsa, Somos Como Las Nubes / We Are Like the Clouds, A Movie in My Pillow
Publisher's Synopsis: Este es un texto bilingüe. Especialmente dirigido a niños pequeños, hijos de emigrantes. Permite conocer y perfeccionar los idiomas español e inglés. La temática, no obstante, es universal. Aborda la problemática que se vive en la familia cuando el pequeño debe enfrentar su primer día de clases. La situación se vuelve realmente dramática para algunos. Nunca antes habían tenido que separarse durante todo un día del hogar. Los padres deberán minimizar los riesgos del suceso, tratando de que no surjan traumas durante el acontecimiento y que, ojalá, este termine siendo un buen recuerdo infantil. Aquí se aborda con imaginación el tema. Luna, la protagonista del cuento, deberá vivir esa experiencia. La pequeña muchachita da forma a su ansiedad frente a lo desconocido, visualizándola en el horrible monstruo de un cuento que la mamá le leyó la noche anterior.
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