Pencil & Eraser: We Have a Dull-emma!: Fiction Early Graphic Novel
It's the start of a new school year, and Pencil and Eraser are ready for anything. Except when Pencil notices her point has dulled. That's never happened before and she feels...pointless. Stella can't write with a dull pencil. So what can Pencil do?
The only answer is to leave the comfort of their desk behind and venture out to find a sharpener. But if Pencil is going on an adventure, she'll need to bring her (reluctant) bestie Eraser along for the ride. Together they'll have to traverse the classroom, scale a mountain-sized desk, enter uncharted territory of the school hallway, and avoid being caught by the janitor. Can Pencil and Eraser manage all that before Stella and her classmates return from recess?

Sounds like an adventure.

Julieta is excited for Abuelita's spirit to visit on Día de Muertos. She is determined to find the perfect gift to honor Abuelita and to show how much she misses her. However, her ideas fail one by one and Julieta grows worried. It is only when Julieta embraces the memories she once shared with her abuelita, that she realizes the perfect gift comes from the heart. An uplifting story about both life and death, family, and the threads that connect us, long after we are gone.

This sounds so meaningful...

Today we celebrate the book birthday of Lola, a magical realist middle grade adventure by Karla Arenas Valenti. The beautiful cover and interior art is by Islenia Mil. We sat down with Musa Karla to learn more about the inspiration behind this book.

Tell us a little bit about Lola:
This is a story about fear and healing. More precisely, how fear can get in the way of necessary change. This topic is explored through a simmering Narnia-esque tale of magic, adventure, and the extraordinary bond between a brother and sister who’d journey to the ends of the Earth to save each other. 

Ten-year-old Lola’s life has always been touched by magic. Her Mexico City home is built around a towering tree with seasonal blooms that seem almost enchanted, a backyard sandbox reveals the most unusual treasures, and mischievous chaneques scuttle about her house unseen by all but her. Lola has always thought of this kind of magic as an ordinary part of her life, but now she must embrace its extraordinary quality as never before.

Ever since The Thing That Happened, Lola’s brother, Alex, has been sick. Lately, however, his condition seems to be getting worse as a growing force ("the Darkness") seems to be closing in on him. At the same time, something has begun eating away at the tree, causing its bright leaves and colorful blossoms to crumble like ash. Lola is sure the two events are related, but how? Seeking a cure, she visits a grocery store oracle who tells her to follow the chaneques down one of their secret passages . . . into a hidden kingdom.
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Floresta is a land of myths and monsters and marvels untold. And there lies the key to healing Alex. But to save him, Lola must use every bit of her wits and face her deepest fears as she uncovers the devastating truth that lies at the heart of this story.
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Wow, sounds intriguing!

Read more after the link...

CALL ME ROBERTO! / ¡LLÁMENME ROBERTO! is a picture book biography about Puerto Rican baseball icon Roberto Clemente that shows the emotional highs and lows of Clemente’s career as he fought bigotry and racism to become one of the greatest baseball players of all time. The title is a reference to Clemente’s plea for the media to not anglicize his name to “Bob.” English and Spanish words are intermingled in the text.

Sounds amazing! 

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Max isn't confident with his Spanish, especially rolling his Rs, and his cousins always tease him about it. But he loves spending weekends baking with his Spanish-speaking abuela, while Lorito the parrot helps translate. But when Lorito disappears for a day, Max and Abuela must figure out how to communicate. Max's Spanish doesn’t have to be perfect, and Abuela can attempt a little English. Trying is what counts!

Today we celebrate the book birthday of MARIA MARIPOSA, by Karla Arenas Valenti, illustrated by Ana Ramírez González. We sat down with Musa Karla Arenas Valenti to learn more about the inspiration behind this book.

María Mariposa is a story about finding confidence, embracing identity, and recognizing that your unique self is more than enough.

A gift from Mexico alights on María Mariposa’s windowsill on her first day of school in a brand-new country: “¡Una mariposa!” she says. With the butterfly, in comes Mexico magic. Filled from her toes to her new butterfly wings with memories of home, María knows exactly who she is and draws on her heritage to give her the courage needed for this very big "first".

But when everything at school is different and strange, doubt chips away at María’s confidence. The place she comes from, the community she loves, the magic inside her...does any of it really belong in her new life in the United States?

With courage and compassion, this picture book confronts the most difficult moments—and feelings—of being new, sweeping listeners up in a powerful celebration of the magic we each contribute to the world.
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Today we celebrate the book birthday of How to Eat a Mango / Cómo see come un
mango by Paola Santos, illustrated by Juliana Perdomo. We sat down with Paola to learn about the inspiration behind this book. 

Tell us a little bit about the book:

Carmencita doesn’t want to help Abuelita pick mangoes; she doesn’t even like them! They’re messy, they get stuck in her teeth, and it’s a chore to throw out the rotten ones. But Abuelita adores mangoes, and patiently, she teaches Carmencita the right way to eat them. Each step is a meditation on everything Mamá Earth has given, and in the Earth’s love, Carmencita feels the love of her Mami, her Papi, her little brother Carlitos, and of course, Abuelita. 

When they finally bite in, the juice running down their arms, Carmencita understands. The mangoes are more than just mangoes… and she’s ready for another!

That sounds so sweet!
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