BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3), EL - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
A young girl works with her abuela in the kitchen, learning about different ways to prepare plantains and how important the plantains are to Latinx culture, community and cuisine. Abuela teaches that plantains are part of their history and that they represent so much more than just food.
Plátanos Are Love is written in English with many Spanish words and phrases mixed right into the sentences on every page. At the end of the story, the author does include a thorough glossary that includes each Spanish word or phrase used in the book - the glossary covers two complete pages! The author also includes three detailed recipes for important plantain dishes mentioned in the story. This is a gorgeously illustrated book, with warm bold colors on the pages representing the current day story, and sepia tones on pages depicting history. The story is full of family and tradition and love. This would be an absolutely perfect book in a dual-immersion Spanish language classroom. It may be a little overwhelming or frustrating for someone to read if they have no Spanish language experience because there is so much Spanish included in the story. Some words and phrases are easy enough to understand using context clues and illustrations, but others are sprinkled in without any real language assistance until the glossary at the end.
Angie Campbell, EL librarian
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