Marcus Vega doesnt speak Spanish by Pablo Cartaya

It is for good reason that Puerto Rico is known as the isla del encanto (isle of enchantment). It is lush, green and full of beautiful friendly people and delicious cuisine. It does have a complicated history though and many books have been written on that subject.

This middle grade novel isn't about any of that however. It's about a kid called Marcus Vega who is bigger than most of his peers and who is sometimes misunderstood by his middle school peers because of this. He isn't a bully however and chooses to use his powers for good, he is quite the entrepreneur. He's also a good big brother to his younger brother Charlie who has special needs. Still, something is missing and when a series of events make his mom decide to carry Marcus and his brother to Puerto Rico this turns out to be the adventure of a lifetime.

For Marcus, number one on his list is getting to meet his dad. He has mixed feelings about this since his dad returned to the island leaving Marcus, his mom and brother back in the US. The fact that Marcus only remembers small things about his father is very frustrating and as he meets various family members on the trip he discovers that there is so much more he didn't know about his dad, his mom and himself.

Pablo Cartaya's familiarity with the island is apparent and he includes various details here and there to give readers a cultural and historical context. Puerto Rico has been in the news a lot recently and people are still getting back to normal after last year's hurricane. Still, as someone who has a lot of friends living on the island I know that Boricuas are resilient people and will keep pushing on.

Dactyl Hill Squad by Daniel José Older

This book continues a trend I have noticed in Daniel José Older's books- they have some really eye catching covers.  This one in particular features several children of color on dinosaurs in a city.

We are thrown headlong into the story when we meet Margaret Rocheford (real name Magdalys Roca) as she and the fellow denizens of the Colored Orphan Asylum are being taken to a performance at the Zanzibar Savannah Theater. In this alternate reality, dinosaurs still exist and many of them are used as forms of transport and for other nefarious purposes.

When Magdalys discovers that she has a hitherto unknown power then life takes a surprising turn and she discovers things about herself and about her world that send her and her friends on a quest.

Older uses many facets of his native New York City as well as several historical events and figures to bring a real authenticity to the novel. I particularly liked how he used Caribbean Spanish words like bochinche. Further, there is an entire section in the back of the book in which he explains his thinking behind the book. I for one appreciated that.


So if you're looking for a slightly scary read for this time of year (or for any time of year for that matter) this one comes highly recommended. I can't wait to see what's next for the squad.  Some read alikes for this are Steven Brezenoff's The Case of the Missing Mom and The Great Shelby Holmes by Elizabeth Eulberg.

Halloween and Day of the Dead crafts

It was a crisp 46 degrees when I came into work this morning and the leaves are changing color so that means that fall is indeed on the way. Besides fall crafts, a big hit this time of the year is Halloween crafts and Day of the Dead crafts. For more information on the Day of the Dead celebration you can check this website.

Skeletons aren't scary when they're done with construction paper and q-tips such as the one below. This next one is a cute little skeleton that can be done by little ones ages.  For these and a host of other skeleton templates check here.

                            




Games for preschoolers and little ones are a fun part of Halloween as well.  This tic tac toe game is easy to use and if you laminate the pieces you can reuse it year after year.

                           



Crafts are an awesome way to help build motor skills and coordination and of course let kiddos express their creativity.  These pumpkins are simple to make and depending on the skill level of your kids you can either cut out the pieces beforehand or let them go to town.

                               

                      



Papel picado is an awesome decorated paper (it means perforated paper). I found some cute decorations online that would be wonderful in classrooms. This video shares how to make papel picado calveras.