Book Review: Book Fiesta! by Pat Mora

General Information

Title: Book Fiesta!

Author: Pat Mora

Genre: Fiction

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Date of Publication: 2009

Illustrator: Rafael López

Lexile Level & Target Audience

Lexile: AD790L/AD520L

Age Range: 5-7

Audience: boys and girls, avid readers, bilingual, Hispanic ethnicity

Brief Summary

Book Fiesta! is a bilingual book which explains a set aside day (Children's Day/Book Day/Book Fiesta) in which children read, read, read. Told from the perspective of children themselves, they explain: "We read in English and Spanish, in Chinese and Navajo . . . at the library . . . in cars . . . and planes . . . to our puppies and kittens . . . riding an elephant . . . or sailing with a whale . . ." These whimsical descriptions, alongside similarly whimsical illustrations, create a wonderful image of reading and the adventures it brings.

Evaluation: Pros & Cons

Pros:

1. A diverse selection of cultures are represented. The illustrations represent children and families from a large variety of races and cultures, emphasizing reading as a part of cultures worldwide.

2. It's enjoyable and exciting to read. A book which tries to convey the adventure and wonder of reading should be an adventure and wonder to read, right? Well, this book is just that. It contains rhyme, assonance, carefully crafted phrasing, and elements of humor and surprise––successfully reflecting in its own structure that reading is fun and worthwhile.

Cons:

1. English, then Spanish. It would be ideal for Spanish to be listed first, helping to emphasize its value and importance; however, if teachers choose to read this text aloud, they could easily read the Spanish lines before the English ones.

[No other real cons.]

Literary Elements

Assonance: Examples of assonance in the text include: "Hooray! Today is our day," "and planes and trains," and "sailing with a whale." This technique works to create a poetic flow amidst the pages, even without a rhyme scheme.

Phrasing: Traditional sentence structures are split up into phrases, spanning across multiple pages before coming to the sentences' "ends." This technique helps to keep the pages moving, with new illustrations every couple of seconds, and increases the attention span of young readers.

Repetition: The words "we read" are repeated a total of nine times throughout the book, creating a clear theme.

Illustrations

As mentioned above, the illustrations work alongside the text exquisitely; they feel magical, whisking readers away to exciting "destinations"––a representation of what reading itself can be like.

Mini-lesson Idea(s)

The technique of repetition is evident throughout this book, and would be a wonderful skill for students to develop. Students could consider themes/topics that center around an action they are passionate about, such as running, singing, or drumming; students could then use two words to repeat throughout their piece of writing (i.e. "I run," "I sing," or "I drum") which center on their action (just as Mora uses the two words "we read"). This activity could be especially useful in writing poetry, although students could have the option of using free verse or rhyme.  

Cheers!

- Aubrey