Carina Felina by Carmen Agra Deedy and Henry Cole - HIGH

Carina Felina by Carmen Agra Deedy, illustrated by Henry Cole. PICTURE BOOK Scholastic Press. 2023. $20. 9781338749168 

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH 

Pepe the parrot falls in love with a cat. He invites her to his house for dinner. Only Carina Felina has other plans. She eats him whole. This is only the beginning of what Carina Felina plans to eat that day. The story is a Cuban retelling of a classic folktale. 

This is a fun story reminiscent of the Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly.  The illustrations are bright and colorful. The human characters are Cuban. There are Spanish words throughout the text. The words are translated within the text as well as in a list at the end of the book. The end of the book includes a short history of the folktale and the recipe for the Cuban crackers that Pepe serves to Carina Felina. 

A. Snow