Thursday, May 14, 2026

Kiki and the Can written by John Leguizamo, Liz Casal, and John Crash Matos - ADVISABLE

Kiki and the Can written by John Leguizamo, illustrated by Liz Casal, featuring graffiti artist John Crash Matos. PICTURE BOOK. Scholastic Inc., 2026. $20. 9781338785692

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS, HS - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SEVERAL

Kiki felt bad that he didn’t have any contributions when his diverse group of friends were sharing about their cultural heroes, so he asked his family about their Latin heritage. Kiki then participates in the citywide mural project, honoring all sorts of Latin heroes with his graffiti portraits.

I picked it up initially because the art was eye-catching, but there is a whole lot more to the text. I felt like this was more informative than the casual reader might enjoy. Still, I think it’s important for Latino representation to have this picture book as a starting place. Kids can then do research on any one of the names mentioned in the book to see what Latin/Latino/Latinx peoples have contributed to art, science, food, & technology over the centuries. I do question why Kiki was allowed to leave his graffiti art everywhere, when not everyone recognizes it as a legitimate art form, but that may be just one of those things you have to suspend your disbelief in order to enjoy this story. 

Kiera, ELA teacher, #bookswithbeddes 


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