cover image The Party for Pap Luis/La fiesta para Pap Luis

The Party for Pap Luis/La fiesta para Pap Luis

Diane Gonzales Bertrand, , trans. into Spanish by Gabriela Baeza Ventura, illus. by Alejandro Galindo. . Arte Pblico/Piata, $16.95 (32pp) ISBN 978-1-55885-532-8

A large cartoon family celebrates Papá Luis's birthday in this lively bilingual book. Every page identifies a different colorful element of the gathering (“This is the candy that filled the piñata that hung at the party for Papá Luis”), and layers them in the style of “There Was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly.” Galindo's exuberant caricatures endow each family member with a distinct personality: Mamá Marta, who makes an enormous layer cake, wears a white, Marge Simpson–like beehive, and three chic adult nieces bring a touch of glamour. Readers will be glad to join in, though the party ends a little suddenly, mid piñata swing. Ages 4–8. (Apr.)