Rate this book

Under The Mambo Moon (2011)

by Julia Durango(Favorite Author)

3.14 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

157091723X (ISBN13: 9781570917233)

languge

English

genre

Poetry

publisher

Charlesbridge

review 1: Kirkus ReviewDurango’s ambitious, inventive poetry collection on Latino music and dance covers an enticing subject but ultimately tries to do too much.During the summer, Marisol helps her father run his music store. This store attracts a plethora of Latino characters, many of whom long for the music of their home countries. Marisol’s first-person free-verse poem frames 14 one-page poems, each titled after different characters. The book alternates between Marisol’s evening at the store and these other poems, which appear in duos and trios until Marisol’s own verse on the title mambo ends the collection. VandenBroeck’s illustrations also rotate, from black and white for the frame narrative to color (replete with grinning, rosy-cheeked characters) for the individual... more poems. The shorter verses vary in style and length, including free verse, rhymed and concrete poems. Musical styles range from mariachi to vallenato, while the dances cover everything from the cha-cha-cha [sic] to the tango. Adding to the wave of characters, musical styles and dances are Spanish words with few, if any, textual clues, although the author does discuss each style briefly at the book’s end. While a few poems allude to the tumultuous backgrounds of some of the styles, the author’s note glosses over colonization and slavery in Latin American history.
review 2: I would have to say that this is my favorite poetry book that I found in my search. I really enjoy children's books that accurately represent a particular culture. This book of poems is written by a Latina author and she writes about personal experiences. The poems are cultured, but young students can still relate to them. What drew me the most to this book of poems, however, were the illustrations. This book is full of color, and the illustrations emphasize the theme of each poem. The pictures contain several people dancing, and provide very vivid facial expressions. This is where my transaction to this book was most powerful. The poems and pictures fit together so well, that I began to think I was really experiencing the latino culture. This is important for children, young and old. The text is rich with culture containing culturally accurate foods, dance, music, education, friends and families. The poems are various, meaning not all of them are traditional rhyming poems. Some of then are haikus and tankas. Because of this, this book is really good for older students who are studying the different types of poetry. I have purchased this book on Amazon and plan on using it in my preschool room, or when I start teaching down the road. I highly recommend this book to other teachers and students who just want to read poetry on their own time. As a teacher, I would love to use this in a unit where we focus on different cultures around the world for our social studies unit. We can focus on the aspects represented in this poetry book because it does provide a lot of facts about this culture. less

Download links for: Under the Mambo Moon

Advertising