Abuela's Library

A tender tribute to libraries and librarians.

PreS-Gr 1–A sweet story about the power of building community and creativity around literacy. Alfonso and his abuela love to read books under the protection of a towering oak tree in their neighborhood. But when the tree is dying and must be cut down, Alfonso comes up with a plan to give the tree a second life and promote literacy in his community. Working together with family and friends, Alfonso creates a little free library out of the tree stump and offers his and his grandma’s book recommendations to neighbors. A particularly effective scene breaks down the nine steps he and his family and friends take to build the library, which gives adults and children the chance to discuss sequences of events. Driving home the importance of community are the compelling illustrations—strong cartoon faces, in a digital style, with broad shapes—represent individuals of all abilities and ethnicities. VERDICT A story teaching the valuable lesson of making lemons out of lemonade. Recommended.

Copyright 2024 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission