La Guitarrista/The Rock Star

PreS-Gr 2–From the creators of Paletero Man/¡Que Paletero tan Cool!, this book features a young guitarist’s road to music fame. Canta’s world takes a life-changing turn when she finds a guitar in the dumpster. With the help of her family and community, Canta fixes up the instrument and gains the confidence to play it for stadium-sized crowds. The playful illustrations add to the fun of the story, using lots of color, detail, and various engaging perspectives. The tale offers novel representation of women in male-dominated careers, such as furniture building, automotive repair, and of course, the genre of rock ‘n’ roll music. The text alternates between English and Spanish, mostly in rhyme; the translation is not literal, but the sentiments are the same in both languages. There are a few awkward sentences around rhyming or when an unsatisfying slant rhyme is used. Still, these moments do not detract from the inspiring story.