I was very excited to receive a free copy of  "Juana and Lucas: Muchos Changes"  by Juana Medina from Candlewick Press to review...

'Juana and Lucas: Muchos Changes' Book Review - Multicultural Children's Book Day

 


I was very excited to receive a free copy of "Juana and Lucas: Muchos Changes" by Juana Medina from Candlewick Press to review for Multicultural Children's Book Day. I love books that sprinkle in non-English words and couldn't wait to find out what changes were in store for Juana (although, the cover did give me a clue that there was probably a baby involed!) "Juana and Lucas: Muchos Changes" is an easy chapter book (with pictures on every page) and is the third book in the Juana and Lucas series by Juana Medina. I was thrilled to discover my library carries the series so we can go back and read the first two books as well! But back to this book.


Juana and her perrito, Lucas, live in Bogota, Columbia. (Of course, that made me want to learn more about Columbia - Global Explorers trip anyone??) We soon learn that Juana's Mami recently got remarried and they are all adjusting to life together in a new house. Juana is getting more comfortable with the situation but then Mami springs another surprise on her - she's going to have a baby! Juana is not thrilled. And then she becomes even LESS thrilled when she learns that Mami signed her up for skating camp during school break when Juana was looking forward to relaxing and having fun swimming, reading, visiting her abuelos, and having sleepovers. How is she going to handle this??


Juana resists going to skating camp, but Mami insists she give it at least 5 tries. I might have to try this strategy! Squidgy is more resistant than Lil C to trying new unfamiliar things, but maybe giving him a clear ending point where he has the choice whether to stop or continue will help. As the story goes on, Juana tackles some more changes, like taking on more responsibility when Mami gets put on bedrest, having to stay with her abuelos while Mami is in the hospital, and having to wait to touch and hold her new baby sister because she is born prematurely.


This book touches on so many topics I think every kid can feel a comradery with Juana - getting a stepdad, becoming a big sibling, trying a new camp, making new friends, feeling like the odd one out, coping with Mami being on bedrest, and having a baby born prematurely. It's such a great look into how change affects children - they need communication, information, support, time, and encouragement! This is a great reminder for us as parents so we can help our children through the changes. Just keep in mind that it won't always go perfectly. When we moved a few years back, we tried to do all this and make it exciting by looking at all the positives we'd gain from the move, but Lil C still had a breakdown when we officially moved out of our old house. There were a lot of tears and hugs. But now we're all so happy in our new bigger house, with a bedroom for everyone, a great school area, and large backyard with lots of trees, animals, and a hill for sledding! 

Like we discovered with our new house, change can be scary and uncomfortable and unwelcome, but often, change can be really wonderful. It can often just take a few (or five!) tries to realize something new is actually fantásticas!



My challenge to all of you is, try something new this week! It can be something tiny like a new food, book, or movie, or something bigger like a new activity, class, or talking to a new person! Give it a try and see what happens!

Check out my other MCBD 2022 review: "Sissy Goes Tiny"


Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2022 (1/28/22) is in its 9th year! This non-profit children’s literacy initiative was founded by Valarie Budayr and Mia Wenjen; two diverse book-loving moms who saw a need to shine the spotlight on all of the multicultural books and authors on the market while also working to get those books into the hands of young readers and educators.

MCBD’s mission is to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in homes and school bookshelves. Read about our Mission & History HERE.

MCBD 2022 is honored to be Supported by these Medallion Sponsors!

SUPER PLATINUM: Make A Way Media

PLATINUM: Language Lizard

GOLD: Barefoot Books, KidLitTV, Candlewick, Capstone, Abrams Books

SILVER: Pack-n-Go Girls, Charlotte Riggle, Kimberly Gordon Biddle  

BRONZE: Carole P. Roman, Patrice McLaurin, Dyesha and Triesha McCants/McCants Squared, Redfin.com, Redfin Canada, Redfin Mortgage, Redfin/Title Forward, Create & Educate, Star Bright Books, Vivian Kirkfield, Dr. Eleanor Wint, Kind World Publishing, Snowflake Stories, Lisa Wee, SONGJU MA, Melissa Stoller, J.C. Kato and J.C.², Crystel Patterson, Audrey Press, Pragmaticmom, TimTimTom, Wisdom Tales 

MCBD 2022 is honored to be Supported by these Author Sponsors!

Charlene Mosley (official MCBD2022 Poster Creator)
Illustrator Isabelle Roxas (Class Kit Poster Creator)

Alva Sachs, Brianna Carter, Ebony Zay Zay, Rita Bhandari, Gwen Jackson, Lois Petren/The 5 Enchanted Mermaids, Valerie Williams-Sanchez and Valorena Publishing, Josh Funk, Afsaneh Moradian, Eugenia Chu, Maritza Martínez Mejía, Diana Huang, Kathleen Burkinshaw, CultureGroove, Sandra Elaine Scott, Dorena Williamson, Veronica Appleton, Alejandra Domenzain, Lauren Muskovitz and Sandfish Publishing, Tonya Duncan Ellis, Kimberly Lee, Susan Schaefer Bernardo & Illustrator Courtenay Fletcher, Nancy Tupper Ling, Winsome Hudson-Bingham, Amanda Hsiung-Blodgett, Sivan Hong, Michael Genhart, Debbie Dadey, Elizabeth Cureton, Stephanie Wildman, Maryann Jacob, Sherri Maret, Rochelle Melander, Dia Mixon, Kiyanda and Benjamin Young, Shereen Rahming, Linda Thornburg and Katherine Archer,  Rebecca Flansburg and BA Norrgard , Maxine Schur  Natalie McDonald-Perkins

MCBD 2022 is Honored to be Supported by our CoHosts and Global CoHosts!

MCBD 2022 is Honored to be Supported by these Media Partners!

Check out MCBD's Multicultural Books for Kids Pinterest Board!

FREE RESOURCES from Multicultural Children’s Book Day

Diversity Book Lists & Activities for Teachers and Parents

Homeschool Diverse Kidlit Booklist & Activity Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Activism and Activists Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Empathy Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Kindness Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Physical and Developmental Challenges Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Poverty Kit

FREE Homeschool Diverse Kidlit Booklist & Activity Kit

FREE Teacher Classroom Raising Awareness on Systemic Racism in America Classroom Kit

Gallery of Our Free Posters

FREE Diversity Book for Classrooms Program

Join us on Friday, Jan 29, 2021, at 9 pm EST for the 8th annual Multicultural Children's Book Day Twitter Party! Be sure and follow MCBD and Make A Way Media on Twitter!

This epically fun and fast-paced hour includes multicultural book discussions, addressing timely issues, diverse book recommendations, & reading ideas.

We will be giving away an 8-Book Bundle every 5 minutes plus Bonus Prizes as well! *** US and Global participants welcome. **

Follow the hashtag #ReadYourWorld to join the conversation, connect with like-minded parts, authors, publishers, educators, organizations, and librarians. See you all very soon on Twitter!

Hashtag: Don’t forget to connect with us on social media and be sure and look for/use our official hashtag #ReadYourWorld.

1 comments:

  I am super excited to be a part of Multicultural Children's Book Day for the second year! Communicating with author Eugenia Chu on he...

'Sissy Goes Tiny' Book Review - Multicultural Children's Book Day

 


I am super excited to be a part of Multicultural Children's Book Day for the second year! Communicating with author Eugenia Chu on her book "Brandon Makes Jiao Zi" for last year's MCBD was just the start of so many more author collaborations and friendships! Not to mention a lot of awesome new books to review and share. 

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases - at zero cost to you.

1 comments:

  When author John C. Stickler reached out to me to share his and his wife's book, "Maya and the Turtle: A Korean Fairy Tale,"...

'Maya and the Turtle' and 'Land of Morning Calm' Book Review

 


When author John C. Stickler reached out to me to share his and his wife's book, "Maya and the Turtle: A Korean Fairy Tale," it planted the seeds of heading to Korea for our next Global Explorers destination. And when I mentioned the idea and he sent me "Land of Morning Calm: Korean Culture Then and Now" as well, I KNEW Korea would be our next destination! So while I finish putting together all the activities and resources for our "trip," here's a glimpse at these two amazing books.

"Maya and the Turtle" is a Korean fairytale written by Soma Han and her husband, John C. Stickler. It tells the story of Maya, a girl who finds a little turtle all alone one day and brings it home to care for it and keep it safe. Many years later, when Maya offers to sacrifice herself to a monstrous centipede in exchange for money to help her ill father, the turtle - who has now grown to an enormous size - in turn sacrifices itself to save Maya. It is a tale of family, love, selflessness, sacrifice, and destiny. The tale was told to Soma by her mother who was told the story by her mother growing up in a small village in Korea. With John's help, Soma translated the tale into English and paired it with her own beautiful watercolor images (seriously, they are amazing!). The story is very well told, something that I know is not always easy to do when you are translating from one language to another. I may have never heard the story told in Korean, but I imagine that this version maintains the essence of the original tale. The new audiobook version is wonderful to listen to as well.

I grew up hearing variations on fairytales by Hans Christian Anderson and the Brothers Grimm in addition to a couple Ukrainian fairytales my mom would tell us. Now, I find it so interesting to read folktales from around the world - it's so fascinating to find strings of commonality in tales told on opposite sides of the country! I've actually just discovered Grace Lin's novels based on Chinese folktales and "Maya and the Turtle" reminded me very much of tales of monstrous magical creatures in Lin's novels. 



"Land of Morning Calm" contains the same beautiful illustrations by Soma Han and delves deep into Korean Culture. I would recommend this book for older elementary students as it really goes into detail about various aspects of Korean culture including dress, food, language, celebrations, and the flag. The book also incorporates various legends and folktales which simply add to the book's charm. If you want a taste of Korean culture, I highly recommend this book. It can be used with younger children, but I would plan on reading only a few pages at a time and mixing it with hands-on activities to maintain their interest. 

Please come back next week for a Global Explorers trip to Korea!


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The kids were so interested while we were reading "The Adventures of Keva: The Power of the Trees" by Ebony Zayzay and they had s...

Interview with 'The Adventures of Keva' author Ebony Zayzay


The kids were so interested while we were reading "The Adventures of Keva: The Power of the Trees" by Ebony Zayzay and they had so many questions! Ebony graciously took the time to answer all of our questions and I'm happy to share them with you all!



Cardboard Mom: Is this your first children's book?

Ebony Zayzay: Yes. I recently began to release children's books in 2021, amidst the pandemic and birth of my first child. I always had an interest in telling stories and encouraging a love for reading.

CM: What inspired you to create the character of Keva?

EZ: I wanted to create characters that looked like me and that other children, especially minority, were able to relate to. In mainstream publishing, they are starting to increase the number of stories featuring minority or BIPOC protagonists; however, as an independent publisher, I have the ability to create more niche stories to appeal to this audience.

CM: What country/area inspired the setting for this story?

EZ: I was inspired by the forest that I grew up with in North Carolina, as well as rainforests in Latin America. I traveled to Costa Rica in the past and was completely amazed by the trees.

CM: What kind of tree is Iya modeled after? What made you decide to write about the power of trees? Do you have a favorite kind of tree?

EZ: I modeled the tree, Iya, based on the Kapok Tree native to Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, northern South American, and West Africa.

I personally always had a deep appreciation for trees, and I still stare at them in amazement of their beauty and history. I really love the multitude of trees in North Carolina, especially when the leaves start to change in the fall. I would say one of the more interesting trees that I've come across is the Socratea exorrhiza, the walking palm or cashapona, which is a palm native to rainforests in tropical Central and South America. I discovered this on my aforementioned trip to Costa Rica. It actually moves location based on the location of the sun!

Chloe, 11: What language is Iya? Does Keva mean something?

EZ: Iya means 'mother' in West Africa, which is where my husband originates. In the story, I mention 'we call her Iya as she gives so much,' as mothers often do. While Keva means 'beautiful/gentle,' which is perfect for this character who has a beautiful spirit and gentleness with nature.

Lil C, 9: How do people use bark to heal wounds?

EZ: It is stated that more than 121 natural remedies in the rainforest can be used as medicine. For instance, there are instances in which bark has been used to help with inflammation, high blood pressure and arthritis. One fun example for children is that the bark and leaves of Christmas trees, or the Scottish Pine, have been used to treat arthritis or improve lung health. However, I'm no medical expert and cannot guarantee the results ;-) 

Resources: 

Chloe, 11 and Lil C, 9: Why did they take Iya out of the ground? What were the people going to do with her? Who were they? (the girls were very upset at the people who took Iya and extremely interested in their purpose)

EZ: Trees like Iya are used for furniture, homes, paper, etc. In the case of Iya, she is very special as she's filled with magic, which may or may not have led to her removal. This is to be discovered in future stories.

CM: Will there be more adventures to come?

EZ: Yes. I plan to tell more stories of her adventures of discovering the magic of the outdoors.


I don't know about you, but I CAN'T wait to read about Keva's next adventure! I think this series will be so inspirational for the next generation of nature lovers and protectors. If you're interested in activities to go along with the book, you can sign up for Ebony's mailing list at www.zayzayco.com to receive activity sheets. And if you missed our review of "The Adventures of Keva: The Power of the Trees," read it here.

0 comments:

  When I saw "The Adventures of Keva: The Power of the Trees" by Ebony Zayzay and Upit Dyoni, I just knew I had to read it! The t...

'The Adventures of Keva: The Power of Trees' Book Review

 


When I saw "The Adventures of Keva: The Power of the Trees" by Ebony Zayzay and Upit Dyoni, I just knew I had to read it! The tree on the cover was amazing and powerful and inspiring and I wanted to know more about Keva and her trees. So I was overjoyed when author Ebony Zayzay sent me a copy to review.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases - at zero cost to you.

0 comments:

  On the cover of "The Last Straw," Jane Goodall is quoted as saying "I encourage everyone to read this book." I wholehe...

'The Last Straw: Kids vs. Plastics' - Read and Rise

 


On the cover of "The Last Straw," Jane Goodall is quoted as saying "I encourage everyone to read this book." I wholeheartedly agree. EVERYONE should read this book.

"The Last Straw: Kids vs. Plastics" is eye-opening in the number of plastic-waste related facts that are included. But not only does this book highlight the widespread problems caused by our plastic use, it also introduces us to a number of scientists, researchers, and kids who are working on solutions and initiating positive action around the world.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases - at zero cost to you.

0 comments:

  "The Funny Foods Best Friends" was written by the daughter of author Jessica D. Adams . Janiece has helped illustrate some of h...

'The Funny Foods Best Friends' Book Review

 


"The Funny Foods Best Friends" was written by the daughter of author Jessica D. Adams. Janiece has helped illustrate some of her mom's books and when her mom told her she should write a story about her food characters, she did!

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases - at zero cost to you.

0 comments:

  When author Claudine Norden generously sent me her book, "Quigley the Quiet Hedgehog" to check out, I wasn't really sure wha...

'Quigley the Quiet Hedgehog' Book Review

 


When author Claudine Norden generously sent me her book, "Quigley the Quiet Hedgehog" to check out, I wasn't really sure what to expect. I'd never come across a children's book discussing introversion and I think that is exactly why Claudine set out to write this series!

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases - at zero cost to you.

0 comments:

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