It's National Hispanic Heritage Month!
Even though I am not in a school anymore, I still love recommending/finding books for people! My mom is a 1st grade teacher and she came to me over the summer to ask what are some good multicultural/diverse authors her students could do book/author studies on. She wants her students to see themselves in the books. One of the first authors to pop into my mind was Angela Dominguez.
She is a newer Latina author on the scene, but she has been making waves already. Her book, Maria Had a Little Llama/Maria Tenia Una Llamita, which I reviewed in the post linked, is a Pura Belpre Honor book and was featured on KidLit TV.
There are several other books written by Angela Dominguez I would like to share with you so that you may have the chance to share this author with your students. One of her other picture book titles is Sing, Don't Cry. The story is inspired by the refrain in the Mexican song, "Cieleto lindo" [roughly translated as "lovely sweet one"], to which she combines with her abuelo's positive outlook on life.
"When you are misunderstood, and when people are unkind, remember--sing, don't cry, even if it is only in your soul."
It is a very sweet portrait of a grandfather's relationship with his grandkids and not overwhelming in text, so young students can enjoy the story, too.
Other titles from Dominguez that are excellent for this author study:
How Do You Say? / Cómo Se Dice? - Two giraffes meander through the forest looking for food. They come to the same tree where they begin to eat and while one exclaims about the food in English, the other exclaims about the food in Spanish. The two form a bond while finding ways to communicate with each other even though there is a language barrier. I feel this is a pretty timely book for right now.
Knit Together - A mother and daughter combine their talents of drawing and knitting to create a special memory of their time on the beach together.
Dominguez could also be used as a study in illustration/reading the pictures in a book with the above titles and the following: Mango, Abuela, and Me by May Medina and Marta! Big and Small by Jen Medina.
