Once upon a Cuento: Bilingual Storytimes in English and Spanish

This thorough introduction not only gives guidance on how to organize and conduct a bilingual storytime but also details how to do effective outreach to Latinx communities. The book is half manual and half ready-to-use bilingual programs for toddlers, preschoolers, and mixed-age and family groups. The thematic, language-rich plans include songs, finger plays, and extension activities and revolve around titles written by Spanish and Latin American authors and representative of Latino cultures. The how-to section on outreach is chock-full of practical advice on programming and book and app selections. The authors feature real-life examples of librarians visiting community organizations and meeting trusted members of Latinx communities in order to communicate the library's mission. The authors emphasize the importance of "[embedding] the library as a valued and trusted community service." Included are literacy maxims in both languages and myths surrounding second language learning. Practical information on how to find and select a bilingual partner and how librarians who are not bilingual can run such programs give this text a greater readership. Much of the advice can be applied to any language group, and an extensive resource list is included.