Bookverdict.com

PreS-Gr 2—Brown has written a series of picture-book biographies of Latino poets and musicians that have set the standard for what a biography for young readers should be. She has taken the lives of Pablo Neruda, Gabriela Mistral, Gabriel García Marquez, and Celia Cruz and created a special type of poetry of her own, with lyrical texts that capture the essence of who these artists were. This newest title is no different. Puente's first band was called Los Happy Boys, and, like his music, reading this book aloud can't fail to put a smile on one's face. It's particularly exciting that Rafael López, the illustrator of Brown's biography of Cel...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

A bilingual picture book charts the life of the Mambo King himself, Tito Puente, with all the exuberance of the drummer and bandleader's irresistible music. Beginning with the opening endpapers, where two children peek through a flame-red theater curtain, Brown and López set the stage for a series of tableaux illuminating highlights in the Puerto Rican musician's life. The scenes themselves are simple enough -- Tito takes mus...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

A joyful biography that brings an influential musician to life. The rhythm of Monica Brown’s text—“The claves smacked clackity clackity clack clack, and everyone’s feet went tappity tap.”/“Las claves se golpeaban cláquit...Log In or Sign Up to Read More