Adela's Mariachi Band

by Denise Vega (Author) Erika Rodriguez Medina (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

Adela loves everything about her family's mariachi band--except that she isn't in it! Shining a spotlight on Mexican music, full of instruments and dancing, Adela's Mariachi Band is sure to be a hit!

Adela wants nothing more than to be a part of her family's mariachi band, but when she tries the different instruments, everything comes out wrong. La trompeta fizzles, la vihuela squeaks, and trying to dance makes Adela fall on her face. From watching her family, Adela knows that practice makes perfect, but can she find a way to be part of the band in the meantime?

A new go-to read-aloud favorite that comes complete with funny instrument sounds, a rythmic text, and Spanish vocabulary. Strike up the band!

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$17.99

Publishers Weekly

Adela loves everything about her family's mariachi band ("how the music skips and bounces.... how her family dances and claps")--except "the fact that she isn't in it." But her early attempts at playing various instruments and joining the dancers quickly reveal that becoming proficient will take a long time ("When Papá plays la trompeta, big, beautiful sounds burst out.... When Adela tries it, a small, fizzly sound dribbles out," Vega writes). Frustrated with her attempts, Adela makes a drawing of beloved mariachi elements that presages her own participation. Rodriguez Medina's warm-toned digital illustrations offer texture and depth to a story that conveys one child's early attempts at being part of something she loves. Characters are portrayed with various skin tones. An author's note and sources conclude. Ages 4-7. (Aug.)

Copyright 2024 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

 

 

Total recommend this book!

A book about never giving up ! And doing things you've never done before!

Denise Vega
Denise Vega wrote and illustrated her first book, The Laziness of Peter Rabbit, when she was around twelve years old. Teachers were a huge influence on Denise and encouraged her pursuit of writing. Today she pulls inspiration from everywhere, from her nieces and nephews to the mountains and streams that grace the view from her home.

Erika Rodriguez Medina is a Mexican art teacher and illustrator. She is the illustrator of There Goes Patti McGee! and Margot and the Moon Landing. Erika works with both traditional and digital media, and loves to illustrate expressive characters, grumpy children, and subjects related to plants and nature. She currently lives and works in Vancouver, BC. www.erikaim.com
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781623544447
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Charlesbridge Publishing
Publication date
August 13, 2024
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV013030 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Multigenerational
JUV031040 - Juvenile Fiction | Performing Arts | Music
JUV011030 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | United States - Hispanic & Latino
Library of Congress categories
Families
Family life
Mexican Americans
Bands (Music)
Mexican American children
Mariachi musicians
Mariachi

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