Tis the season for spring filled holidays, and today we're stepping into the traditions of the Latine community as we explore an EGG-cellent celebration that's definitely all it's CRACKED up to be! Let's step between the pages of a new Storybook title that shares the story of Tori and his familia as they make preparations to see just who should claim the crown as cascarone king/queen!
An Eggcellent Not-Just-for-Easter Shellebration!
by
Sara Andrea Fajardo
Illustrated by
Rocío Arreola Mendoza
9780593805671
Knopf Books for Young Readers
This fun filled and colorful tale shares with us a tradition that I hadn't heard of before, but found rather EGG-citing! Colored eggs (or this year potatoes considering the prices 🤣) were always something that brought to mind Easter. We would hard boil them, let them cool and dry, then die them, or draw on them, or use those little shrinky sleeves to make them MORE than what they were. We'd use the plastic ones to fill with little treasures or candies and place them in baskets for giving, or outside for egg hunts. THIS tradition, uses the eggs themselves, emptied, dried, and FILLED with all kinds of things...but most commonly, confetti...and Toni has his eye set on being crowned king of the celebration! He has it all planned out, and ready to go...but his family isn't EGG-actly taking it lying down. They may have some plans of their own that are going to shove an EGG shaped obstacle in his path to being ruler!
I love how the family gets in on the fun, and I ADORE who actually becomes the champion...or rather protects their title. 😃 It sounds like a great way to be playful with family and friends, challenge each other to friendly competition, and carry on a celebration that started somewhere back in the 1800's. The story along with the EGG-cellent illustrations really bring this party from page to life...as does the HOW-TO on how to make your own! So, this year when Easter rolls around, maybe you'll start a new tradition in your family...or perhaps surprise them with all you've learned about this one! 😉
And now, for a peek behind the INSPIRATION FOR THE STORY from the author herself....
I wanted to write a book that was a celebration of my latinidad without it being centered on identity. Something that felt like both a celebration and invitation to join in on the fun.
I was inspired by my prankster family. As a kid my brothers loved playing jokes on my sister and me, swapping out our cereal for Legos or tying all the spoons together so that when we pulled one out, we'd get 20 clattering ones instead.
And then, there was my grandmother who on Día de los inocentes (Peruvian April Fools Day) would spare no one. Everyone was a target for one of her pranks. She was tiny, barely grazing five feet, and looked so unassuming, she was the last person anyone would ever suspect. That's where the Abuela character came from. In fact the characters are also named after my family members, Toti is my uncle who is the non-stop entertainer, and Carlita, is my cousin who is whip smart, nothing gets past her.
In a nutshell, this book is my homage to fun loving Latine families and one of my all-time favorite traditions, cascarones. It's impossible not to have fun when you have a cascarón in your hand.
About the author...
Sara Andrea Fajardo has been on a life-long path of telling stories: first as a photojournalist, then as a multimedia storyteller for humanitarian aid organizations, and now as a children’s writer. She has lived in Peru, Finland, Japan, Kenya and currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, with her husband and two children.
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About the illustrator...
Rocío Arreola Mendoza is a freelance illustrator and co-founder of Cúrcumas Creative Studio. She has worked with Matamoros City’s Government in Mexico, making commercial illustrations for social media and printed campaigns. She lives in Mexico with her husband, child, and cats.
Special thanks to the Alessandra at Random House Children's Books for the copy for review. (THANKS!) For more information on this title, the author, or the illustrator, feel free to click through the links provided above. This title is available now wherever books are sold.
Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!
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