Pat Mora, illustrated by Maribel Suárez,
Let’s Eat/ ¡A Comer!
Sweet Dreams/ ¡Dulces Sueños!
Here, Kitty, Kitty!/ ¡Ven, gatita, ven!
("My Family/Mi Familia" series)
HarperCollins/Rayo, 2008.

Ages 4-8

Let's Eat, Sweet Dreams and Here, Kitty, Kitty! are the three titles currently available in Pat Mora and Maribel Suarez's four-book series of easy-read bilingual books featuring the Rosas family.

Mom, dad, three kids, grandma, a dog and a kitty live under the same roof, sharing love, traditions and family fun in these joyful little books of tender images and warm prose.

Illustrated by Mexican illustrator Maribel Suárez, whose work is characterized by delicacy and liveliness, the depiction of the Rosas family is spot-on all round. Whether the family is eating together (Let's Eat), being tucked into bed by grandma at day's end (Sweet Dreams) or simply searching for their spunky kitty (Here, Kitty, Kitty!), little ones will find many ways to relate to and enjoy the sense of "small joys" the stories convey. They are likely to initiate conversations about all the familiar topics: food (how different families eat different foods), bedtime routines (how theirs is different/similar to the one depicted in the story) and the fun of having pets.

Especially perfect for the very young learning a second language, the "My Family/ Mi Familia" series fills an important gap in the world of bilingual easy-read books.

Aline Pereira
September 2008