Octopus Stew

Ramsey, the young narrator, has a grandmother with a steel will, and when his painting of Super Octo inspires her to make pulpo guisado—octopus stew—there’s no dissuading her. Even though it’s “not exactly my favorite dish,” the boy is admonished first to leave behind his beloved superhero cape (“If you think I am going to the store with you wearing that silly cape, you’ve lost your mind”), then to stop looking into mollusk facts as he accompanies Grandma to buy a pink octopus the size of a jumbo garbage bag. But when the totally sentient, increasingly enormous, and very angry octopus takes over the kitchen and holds Grandma in one of its eight clutches, a superhero who knows a thing or two about the animal turns out to be just what the occasion calls for. Oil paintings by Velasquez (Looking for Bongo) have a lush, generously sculptural feel—a heightened comic realism that’s perfect for this domestic tall tale, its multi-armed nemesis, and the wonderful gatefold twist that occurs at the action’s height. An author’s note and nonstandard Spanish glossary expand upon Ramsey’s Afro-Latino family and traditions of cooking and storytelling. Ages 4–8. [em]Agent: Rubin Pfeffer, Rubin Pfeffer Content. (Oct.) [/em]