La Madre Goose by Susan Elya - OPTIONAL

Elya, Susan Middleton La Madre Goose, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal.  PICTURE BOOK.  G.P. Putnams (Penguin), 2016. $17.

Elya takes familiar English language nursery rhymes and in some of them just changes some of the words to Spanish and in others retools the wordings to make rhymes that make more sense with the Spanish words.

I need to read more books written originally in Spanish for children.  I can only compare this to other books that integrate English and Spanish, such as Dia de Los Muertos by Roseanne Thong and Rubia and the Three Osos by Elya herself, each of which is done more skillfully than this offering.  Elya shines best when she changes up the poems – when she leaves the rhyme wording more intact, they don’t work very well.

EL (K-3) – OPTIONAL.  Cindy, Library Teacher

La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Elya - ADVISABLE

Elya, Susan Middleton La Princesa and the Pea, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal. PICTURE BOOK. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (Penguin Random House), 2017. $17. 9780399251566

This retelling of the Princess and the Pea is muy bueno!  The story stays true to the familiar story - princess needs to stay the night, so queen tests to see if she’s a true princess with an unrealistic challenge (pea under 20 mattresses). The twist with this story is that it’s also a spanish primer.

Beginning with a glossary (nice touch, it gave the reader a heads up that there were Spanish words to look for) the simple poetic text replaced important english words with the Spanish - printed in red so you knew they were there.  The illustrations are delightful, colorful and cultural.  This was a fun read.

EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE  Lisa Librarian

La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Middleton Elya, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal - ADVISABLE

Elya, Susan Middleton.  La Princesa and the Pea, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal.  G. P. Putnam Sons,2017.  $16.99.  Content: G.  PICTURE BOOK.

Primarily in English, but with several Spanish words thrown in, the fairytale of the Princess and the Pea is retold.  El Principe was lonely and wanted to get married, but his mother was very picky about princesses.  One day, a beautiful maiden on the way to her castle asks to stay.  The mother picks the smallest of peas and demands that several mattresses be brought.  The maiden tries to sleep on the mattress, but can’t.  She passed the test and married the prince.  The prince was quite pleased for he had put pitchforks and stones in the bed.  And they have several children after they are wed.   

The author uses great riming and natural word rhythms that make this a natural read aloud book.  The story sparkles with wit and words in both English and Spanish.  I really liked the twist of the prince making sure that the princess passed the test.  The illustrations have a South-American flare and pair perfectly with the story.  This book would be a great choice for story times, particularly bilingual Spanish/English story times. 

Pre-K, EL (K-3) -ADVISABLE.  Samantha Hastings, MA, MLS. 

Rubia and the Three Osos by Susan Middleton Elya - ESSENTIAL

Elya, Susan Middleton Rubia and the Three Osos illustrated by Melissa Sweet 40 pg. Hyperion Books, 2010. PICTURE BOOK. $15.99. This was a cute new English/Spanish rendition of the classic Goldilocks and the Three Bears story. Written in rhyme, there is a smattering of Spanish words throughout the story that are highlighted and bolded. Unique about Spanish words is that the English meaning isn't accompanied with the Spanish word which I thought was a fresh change up. There is, however, a glossary included at the back.  The rhyming was consistent throughout the story which made it a smooth, lyrical read. The story is the same until the end where there is a revised ending with a nice moral. The illustrations were fantastic and added a wonderful dimension to the story. This would be a fun one to have in a bilingual class. EL-ESSENTIAL. Whitney, Library-Teacher.

Little Roja Riding Hood by Susan Middleton Elya –OPTIONAL

Elya, Susan Middleton Little Roja Riding Hood 32 pgs. Putnam Juvenile; Bilingual edition, 2014. $16.99 Content: Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G Violence: G. PICTURE BOOK.

A re-telling of little red riding hood infused with Spanish culture and words. Roja is sent to grandmas with some hot soup and a warning to avoid anything furry or wild. When she meets up with a wolf, he takes her cape, and goes off to trick her Abuelita. Will Roja save the day?

While I am a fan of re-tellings, I found the plot of the version to be a bit confusing. I like the infusion of culture and Spanish words and think this book would be very fun for a ESL student. I didn't like that the mom was watching a soap opera featuring a man and a woman in an embrace, being caught by another woman.

EL (K-3) –OPTIONAL Reviewer: Stephanie Elementary School Librarian & Author.