Skip to main content

"Abuelo, the Sea, and Me"

Written by Ismée Williams                Illustrated by Tatiana Gardel

Image Source: Macmillan Publishers
        When looking at the illustrations in "Abuelo, the Sea, and Me", each spread complements the corresponding text and the setting. The first spread has bright, vivid warm colors to highlight the summer season on the ocean. Once Abuelo and the girl put their feet in the water the images use more blues and greens to highlight the cold water on their feet. Once the story shifts to fall, Gardel uses deep pinks and purples to highlight the early setting sun in the fall and allude to the cold that is coming. While Abuelo describes his past with winning medals for swimming the image of the medals washed up on the shore is very dull and the colors muted as he thinks of his past. The next page has a bright warm yellow that signifies hope when the girl tells her Abuelo that someday she may win a medal. The illustrations in the season of winter have a muted blue tone to them to help envoke the cold and darkness of winter. At the end of the book, we come full circle to the beginning of spring and the blue is starting to be overtaken by a brighter yellow that is warming up the air but also representing the hope and rebirth of spring. There is also a beautiful detail that the illustrator left with the clouds. After Abuelo describes growing up seeing dolphins and marlin, the girl imagines them in the sky. After that page anytime there is a cloud it is in the shape of a dolphin or marlin.

        The text throughout the book is appropriate throughout the book. They also include Spanish words that the little girl typically "translates" on the consecutive page of the spread. The plot feels realistic and well constructed without. While it does cover all of the seasons, the pace does not feel rushed. The theme feels very natural, as many children really love spending time with a grandparent. The text feels like a genuine experience with a grandparent.

        This book is important to share with children because we have non-white characters of different generations sharing sweet moments on the beach. This book is a sweet reminder that grandparents can have complicated pasts that grandchildren will get small pieces of throughout their lifetimes. This is also an important story of showing a healthy family dynamic across generations. This is also a heartwarming story of the immigrant experience of missing the past but hope for the future of your family. I would add this book to my personal library, as I believe it is so important to have books that are different from my own experience. It was also reviewed professionally, including by Kirkus Reviews.


Williams, Ismée. Abuelo, the Sea, and Me. Illustrated by Tatiana Gardel. Roaring Brook Press, 2024. 32 pages. Tr. $15.99, ISBN 978-1-250-84877-2. 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Let's get reading!

Welcome!  I will be using this blog to respond to and evaluate children's books for the LIS 721 Library Materials for Children class for Fall 2025. I really enjoyed and learned so much in the Materials for Young Adults class and hope to do the same in this class. Happy reading!
Post a Comment
Read more

"A Different Pond"

Written by Bao Phi                    Illustrated by Thi Bui Image Source: Amazon           The illustrations in "A Different Pond"  are almost all darker richer tones to depict the darkness of the hour that the Dad and the boy are up at. When there is light it is a deep yellow to show the warmth and comfort of their home, but also representing their lights without lamp shades to help diffuse the light in the house, as a lampshade is an extravagance for them. Thi does a wonderful job of using tones of blue and brown to shade the environment and shadows around the father and son that adds a beautiful depth to the images but also adds to the symbolism of the weight that the father feels everyday when he is fishing so that their family can eat.          The text in this book is appropriate for the children reading it and is a credible conversation. "A Different Pond" is a real...
Post a Comment
Read more

"A Little Like Magic"

Written and Illustrated by Sarah Kurpiel Image Source: readbrightly.com           The illustrations in "A Little Like Magic"  use a whimsical cool color scheme to help show the cold of the winter as they journey out in the cold. There are touches of warm colors when looking through windows into the warm house, as well as her toy horse to represent the warmth and comfort they bring. The full-page spreads that show the mother and child outside during the day use muted cool colors, while the full-page spreads at night use deeper, richer cool colors. Sarah does a wonderful job using lines to help show movement and the cold wind. The lines also help keep the eye moving throughout the spreads.          The text in this book is appropriate for the children reading it as it is simple and most of the language is vocabulary they would have heard before. Each page has one to three sentences. Repetition is used when the main character revi...
Post a Comment
Read more