The Perfect Siesta by Pato Mena - ADVISABLE

The Perfect Siesta by Pato Mena. PICTURE BOOK. nubeOCHO, 2016. $16. 9788494541537

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE.

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

A jaguar has an important unnamed task to do, but wants to squeeze in a little nap beforehand. He asks the coati to wake him up in ten minutes. The coati agrees but then decides she is tired too and asks the cockatiel to wake her up. This goes on until a sloth is asked to wake everyone up.  The sloth also falls asleep, but luckily starts snoring and does the job of waking them up with that. 

I loved the illustrations in this book. They are bright and even surprising such as one spread on which the sloth’s face takes up the entire two pages. The book introduces animals that may be unfamiliar to young readers. My only hesitation is that wanting to take a nap and the task of waking others up from naps is not a relatable experience to young readers. This may be a book that adults enjoy more than kids. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher