Spanish Books Books

This book is so fantastic! Not only does it teach farm animals and opposites but you can count flowers or bugs, learn colors, tell stories about what the animals are doing, and so much more. My two-year-old *loves* this book and always laughs when we get to the end. I love the cute pictures (the illustrator uses felt cutouts instead of drawings) and how much fun we have following the pig around. You won't be sorry if you buy it--it's a great book.

My daughter loves this book and asks for it again and again. She loves all the little bugs illustrated with incredibly clever sewing techniques. I love looking at the illustrations and marvelling at the things one can do with pinking shears and rick-rack.

This is beautifully illustrated with felt, thread and beads. The pictures are simple, brightly colored and just so cute! The story is a rhyming one and easy to read, easy for the child to understand.

This book is great to read, to look at, and to recite. Just a superb children's book - the best I've found. Our one-year-old loves it.

George's Pond: Created in the Beloved Tradition of Charlotte's Web
West's Time Machine

Being a children's writer and educator, I often enjoy reading Charlotte's Web as a child and now I enjoy reading the book to my son and my students. I believe part of the reason this book has remained one of my favorites is because of the classic friendship between Wilbur and Charlotte. Both characters demonstrate an unselfish kind of love that is demonstrated from the time they meet. As a mother I want to teach my children the valuable life lesson of being a good friend and I think this story teaches that lesson in a non-didactic fashion. Charlotte's Web will eternally be a classic in my heart.

I have read this story several times in my adult life and, since I am studying Spanish, I wanted to read it in that language as well (with an English copy close at hand for reference.)

I am delighted to own my Spanish copy of Charlotte's Web.

T. William Waltrip, M.D.

Justo el libro que le quieres leer a tu hija por las noches.

Yo le recomiendo este libro a todos que quieren regresar a su infancia. Yo estoy muy encantada con este libro. La historia de Carlota es mejor. También intentar Los Reinos Y Los Elfos De Las Quimeras.

"Chato and the Party Animals" is a fun children's book by Gary Soto. The story is superbly complemented by Susan Guevara's illustrations. The book opens with a Spanish-English glossary. The text is in English, with Spanish words from the glossary ("comida," "el barrio," etc.) blended in.

Chato is a cat -- described as a "party animal since he was a kitten." But he's also a caring cat, and the story's plot is set into motion when Chato comes up with an idea to cheer up Novio Boy, a friend of his who is feeling sad.

"Chato" is really hilarious. In addition to the Spanish words, Soto spices up the dialogue by having the cats call each other "dude" and "Homecat." The story involves a nice mix of silliness and warmth, and ultimately celebrates friendship. Guevara's outrageous, colorful pictures are full of energy and packed with surreal details. Definitely something out of the ordinary, and something special.

Chato's back. Having learned his lesson from his encounter with the mice in "Chato's Kitchen" this kitty cat is now at peace with every animal he encounters. So much so, in fact, that he is quite the partier. While attending the birthday celebration of the dog Chorizo, Chato discovers a sad fact about his buddy Novio Boy. Originally from the pound, Novio Boy never knew his mother and never had an official birthday. That's all the info Chato needs as an excuse to throw for Novio Boy one of the biggest birthday celebrations ever. He hires a dj, buys tons of food and presents, even purchases a gigantic blow-up dog to fight with. As the guests arrive, however, one fact remains alarmingly clear. Novio Boy was never invited to his own party! After some scrambling and a mistaken death everything turns out for the best and Novio Boy has one of the best pachangas a cat could hope for.

If you've never read a book that combines the effortless writing style of Gary Soto with the eye-popping grandeur of Susan Guevara, you're in for a treat. Like "Chato's Kitchen" this book provides a useful Spanish/English glossary for quick referencing. Spanish words pop up in appropriate places, never sounding forced or out of sync with the storyline. But illustrator Guevara has truly outdone herself here. In the previous Chato book the crazy energy and color of life was remarkable but not overwhelming. Here, on the other hand, Guevara's pulled out all the stops. From the guardian angel-like imagery of Novio Boy's mother that flies, unseen, from picture to picture, to Chorizo's beret and the repetitive phrase (which I loved ) "We are not a minority" that appears in a couple scenes in the background, this book has it all. Best of all is the moment in which each character (thinking Novio Boy dead) stands and thinks of what they liked best about him. As they do, Novio Boy appears on each person's head, acting out their compliments. Guevara also has a sense of movement that allows each character to slouch, run, relax, or dance in a natural free flowing way. It's a talent most illustrators pray they'll attain in their lifetimes.

Some people might be put off by the energy and dynamics in this book. If so, I am truly sorry. My advice would be to flip through this book to make sure you're up to the challenge of reading it to your kids. After all, if your reading style is flat and colorless, this is not the book to put your children to bed with. You are, in fact, unworthy of the text. If instead, however, you have a sense of style and flair that can match this eloquent book, definitely seek it out. Honestly, you've never seen anything like this before.

This book is great on so many levels. I read it with students I tutor and they requested it again and again. At the end of the year I gave them each a copy as a gift. Both of them opened it and got wide-eyed as they saw what it was! One of them said, "This is my favorite book ever!" This was wonderful to hear from a kid who started out so reluctant to read. The story is great on so many levels; there is a message of friendship that is not sappy, but very sincere. Soto also skillfully weaves in the culture of the barrio with his use of Spanish and Mexican themes. What a lovely story.

Novio Boy is a tough kitty, but he does have one soft spot. He comes from the pound. He never knew his mami, and since he doesn't know when his birthday is, he's never had a party. When his best friend Chato realizes how sad this makes him, he decides to throw him a huge birthday party. This is a delightfully fun story of community and friendship. Soto cleverly intertwines Spanish and English, bringing in slang from both languages, creating a cool, hip atmosphere. These homecats kick back and say things like, "he was muy kind," and "the coolest carnal in all the barrio." The language gives us a true taste of barrio spanglish. When Soto's deliciously funny words marry Guevara's festively vibrant acrylic illustrations, the story truly becomes alive.

...sino es el Che verdadero hablando por el mismo.Explica el porque el cambio social no es haciendo por personas solitarias individualistas ; se trata como la revolucio`n cubana descubrio` " el camino de Marx " como gui`a de accio`n mientras haciendo la revolucio`n ;de la technologi`a como arma de la revolucio`n ; y de el papel de una organizacio`n disciplinada de joven comunistas que son educado en el Marxismo ( y educada por los trabajadores
y campesinos mismos en lucha ) en la vanguardia de la revolucio`n. La introduccio`n de la editor Mary-Alice Waters,una dirigente socialista norteamericana , se trata de la relevancia del texto a jovenes rebeldes mundiales de hoy di`a.

...sino es el Che verdadero hablando por el mismo.Explica el porque el cambio social no es haciendo por personas solitarias individualistas ; se trata como la revolucio`n cubana descubrio` " el camino de Marx " como gui`a de accio`n mientras haciendo la revolucio`n ;de la technologi`a como arma de la revolucio`n ; y de el papel de una organizacio`n disciplinada de joven comunistas que son educado en el Marxismo ( y educada por los trabajadores
y campesinos mismos en lucha ) en la vanguardia de la revolucio`n. La introduccio`n de la editor Mary-Alice Waters,una dirigente socialista norteamericana , se trata de la relevancia del texto a jovenes rebeldes mundiales de hoy di`a.

Los títulos de los discursos lo dice todo para que este libro quede de cabecera para todo rebelde.

Siendo médico él, explicó que no basta ser buena gente para ser médico revolucionario, sino hay que hacer una revolución. Ya victoriosa la revolución, explicó la que tiene que hacer la juventud comunista. Se puede tomar este consejo bastante a pecho, porque hay demasiada gente que quiere ser buena persona y hasta allí.

Lee el Ché en su propia voz, para que juzgas con tu propio criterio. Es en esto que se destaca la editorial Pathfinder: dar espacio los revolucionarios hablar por si mismo, y bien merecedora es esta adición a su "serie" de "Habla..."

De índole histórico, en esta colección se puede trazar la maduración intelectual de este personaje, de la manera en que se estaba llegando a cuajar las ideas que resultaron en el primer proyecto socialista solidaria, que se volvió a tomar en 1985 -justo a tiempo antes de que la URSS empezó a estremecer-.

El libro publica ocho discursos pronunciados por el dirigente de la revolución cubana, Ernesto Che Guevara, en reuniones con estudiantes y trabajadores cubanos, y jóvenes de otros países solidarios con la revolución. Nos da un vistazo importante a algunos aspectos claves en la historia de la revolución cubana. Y realmente los discursos son aún más importantes por su relevancia hoy en día para trabajadores y jóvenes de todo el mundo.

Che habla del desarrollo de la revolución, del subdesarrollo económico y los pasos necesarios para transformar la sociedad, de los enfrentamientos con el gobierno norteamericano, de la reforma agraria y su importancia para cualquier país en un proceso revolucionario. Habla también del papel del individuo en la sociedad, presentando una perspectiva no de caridad sino de solidaridad con los oprimidos y explotados. Expresa una confianza enorme en la capacidad de jóvenes -- estudiantes, obreros y campesinos-- de superarse en el proceso de cambiar la sociedad.

¡Léalo! ¡Compártalo! ¡Discútalo! ¡Qué sea de provecho!

This book is truly the language of the Chilean people. It's mainly slang, which makes it so fun. I have a friend in Santiago who said that it was truly slang. I said good then I shall know the language when communicating. However what is not in the book if you want real coffee not instant coffee in Chile you are to ask for cafe, cafe. Also 1 minute in the Chilean language, there is another term that is not in the book, it means it could be an hour. Just an FYI. I enjoyed the book as did my friend in Santiago, Chile........ when I purchased this.

I spent hours with some chilenos discussing this book. They laughed and were amazed how the author captured the true meanings and nuances throughout this book. I recommend it to anyone traveling to Chile as a must!

We just took a trip to Chile last month and bought this book off Amazon and were SO glad to have it with us. We used it to learn "Chilean" spanish and it was very helpful. The phrases in the book are quite accurate, according to the locals, and they were surprised to see some of their everyday phrases in the book. I highly recommend it if you're going to visit or live in Chile and you need a jump start on their dialect of the language.

This book will be a great help for anyone planing on going to Chile, and will be a hoot for anyone who's been there (esp. those who know Spanish). Having lived there, I wish I had this book before I went! I love this book.

What an amazing book! The way that Josephine has interpreted things in this book is just amazing! It brought me to tears! I would recommend this book to everyone. It is a book to keep on your nightstand forever!

Amor y ternura de Josephine Powers, la hilandera de las espigas del trigo. Miscelanea literaria de poemas, prosas líricas, citas literarias y poemas an prosa que fluyen como lava volcánica por las landeras de sus recuerdos. El cántico espiritual que nos ocupa es una poética autobiográfica no adscrita a ningún género literario. Su espíritu (el desierto ) recibe la palabra de Dios (el chubasco ) y se transforma en las espigas del trigo(los frutos de su poética) gracias a que "lloran las nubes" y "el milagro se hace" mudándose "en sublime verdor de luz inapagable". Y Dios le dijo: "ESCRIBE MIS PALABRAS, SIEMBRALAS POR TODO EL MUNDO, SE DISPERSARÁN COMO LA LUZ MISMA; BAÑARÉ DE AMOR, TERNURA, CONOCIMIENTO Y PODER AL QUE LAS PERCIBA".

Escribo esto para cualquira persona que busca inspiracion. Este libro solo puede estar inspirado por nuestro Senor, Jesu Cristo. La autora usa sus palabras benditas para darnos su fe....

Hello, I have a very Spanish family, and I have read this book. It touched my heart. I gave copies to all my family & friends. You will be sure to enjoy this book. It is well worth the price.

A long saga of a family; this is a Nobel Prize author, you know. And every page is full of life. It speaks about humanity's good and weak points, a truly lovely book.

Marques' "100 Years of Solitude" is a great novel for anyone interested in the study Magical realism. It merges the history of a South American family with the villiage set up by the head of the family. With a few interesting twists along the way it makes for an intriguing read ,however the names can get a little confusing .If you are not very good with names ,the family tradition of naming all of the males with very similar names, in very simmilar combinations mixed with the pace of the book (100 years in just over 400 pages) it may leave a little lost. A very good example of Magical Realism for anyone interested in the field.

Having a soft corner for classification, one can classify everything. The books also can be classified. For example, into good and bad ones. In this case "100 Years of Solitude" is a good book. Or they can be classifies into great and good. Therefore "100 Years of Solitude" is considered a great book. Or into those, which got a Nobel Prize and those, which did not. Marques got Nobel Prize for his book "100 Years of Solitude". But to classify the contents of this book and to tell what is this book about...? it's next to impossible. It is about small town Macondo on the bank of the river, which runs its clear water in the white-stone polished bed. It's about the world of Latin America, quite a new world, that some things even do not have a name, and have to be pointed with the finger... About six generations of Buandia family... About love, loneliness and death. About endless cyclic recurrence and reiteration of love, loneliness and death. Reiteration, but already in other people, other characters, words and other life. In the life, which is impossible without love, loneliness and death. What amazes most in the book - is the great number of people, destinies and plots. Just imagine - the talented Shakespeare specialist made up his mind to summarize each Shakespeare play in one page. He has to carefully preserve grandeur, language, tragedy and humor. He selects two-three best quotations, unites the characters of all plays together as relatives or citizens of one town. He replaces castles and palaces by streets, where simple white houses sink in the heat under almond-trees for half a year, and for the rest of the year they sail in the rain like ships in an autumn sea. Replaces swords and man's sleeveless jackets by simple homemade clothes. Replaces crowded Europe by boundless selva, by poppy fields, where one can find the island of Spanish galleon and the Cordilleras, with peaks, buried in snow and clouds. The book might tuned out to be praise-worthy. But to make it similar to "100 Years of Solitude" it had to be saturated with unique rhythm and atmosphere of Latin America, as Marques did. One of his interview cited that the most difficult for him was to present the language of the novel. He had to tell this in such a manner, like his forefathers did: impassively, with absolute firm calmness, which can not be destroyed even if the world turns upside down. This fascination of impassivity in the face of joy and sorrow, impassivity, but not heartlessness, could not have appeared in Marques characters without any reason. It needed about 400 years of mixing blood of Spanish adventurer-conquistadors, which contained both European and Moorish blood, with Indian blood, which originated the art of patient waiting. Waiting, which is similar to many-hour immobility of condor soaring above the mountain canyons. It needed to happen mixing of risk of bullfights with ferocity of cockfights, mixing of Arabic and catholic styles of architecture in Spain, brought through calm and storm of the Atlantic, with the nature of Latin America, with jungles and salt sea winds. It needed to happen to give birth to an old man, which paid attention neither to ardent rose bushes, nor to spilled shine of sunset, and could answer the question of a stranger, which dared to break his loneliness: - What are you doing, colonel? - I am just sitting and waiting when coffin with my body will be carried by.

The novel "100 Years of Solitude" to some extend is written like a mirror. Marques looked into it and saw the town of his childhood, his granny, bustling about, and his grandpa, the veteran of the Civil war. Any reader of this book can look at himself in the mirror. In one of the pages he will see the reflection of his love, loneliness or death. But there is nothing sad in it. The life comes back again and again, but only Macondo will have been destroyed by hurricane and have been escaped from human memory. Those human generations, which are condemned to hundred years of loneliness, are not fated to appear on the Earth twice.

It's very hard for me to describe this book, or to explain
what it is about. I only can say that it left me deeply
troubled...something mythically desperate. It's the story of
a clan, condemned to solitude. Either of its members, innate or
adopted, suffers from either love, or solitude, or death...but not a mixture.
One very good friend described this work by an analogy to ergotic
systems (from statistical mechanics in physics)...there are two
ways to measure the "average" of a system: either by fixing a single point and observe it for a very long time, or by fixing a time and observing all of the space. If the averages found in both these ways is the same, then the system is called ergotic.
Buendia familly in this sence was ergotic. It's history consisted of endless repetitions and cycles, and meanwhile a
look on all its members at a given time would describe its present, past and future.

I love this series. Great photos, appropriate vocabulary, rich language. These books are an excellent resource for teachers.

I teach First Grade and I find the Rookie Read-About Holidays series to be a good starter for a lesson. The holiday is explained in a simple way and can lead into a Social Studies or multicultural lesson. I used the Cinco De Mayo book this past Friday. I have about 8 books and I highly recommend them.

Another great Rookie Reader! These books are great for ESOL students of all ages who read at a beginning level. This book provides a very clear idea of how Cinco de Mayo is celebrated.

This is a great teaching source for young children learning about Mexico.

One of a series of children's picture books by Idries Shah, this one includes a Spanish version along side the English. It contains all the elements of a favorite children's book: Lavish illustrations, frequently repeated phrases and a child hero. But adults will enjoy the surprises, too, as the protagonist frightens those he's trying to help and other developments. The costumes tell the adults it's a tale from the Middle East, and the lesson is clear in these post 9/11 days. There may be help from sources we are afraid to investigate.

Tragedies like Columbine are a wake-up call. It's clear that we need to provide our kids - especially boys - with tools to counter the violence and knee-jerk aggression ubiquitous in popular culture. These children's stories by Idries Shah are just this kind of tool. They're not preachy. They don't offer simplistic lessons or moral platitudes. They're more like exercises for "mental muscle groups" grossly underdeveloped in this culture: A strong sense of one's own value. Empathy. Flexibility in thinking and responding. Appreciating that not everyone is the same, not every outcome is predictable. Seeing that there are more than two sides to a situation. A sense that patience and perseverance can pay off, sometimes in unexpected ways. Not demanding easy answers. A sense that things are not always as they seem, that the viewpoint of "experts" - or even the whole community - is not always right. The experience of seeing something that even adults don't see, of creating clever solutions. The sense that taking positive action is possible and rewarding-even when one has to buck the tide. That help can come from where and when we least expect it. The sense that life has interesting "loose ends" for us to reflect on. And so much more. At least one of these books should be on every child's book shelf.

This beautifully illustrated book, part of a children's series by Idries Shah, is sure to delight kids and parents alike. Based on a tale told for centuries in Central Asia and the Middle East, it is about a boy who happens upon a village where the people are terrified of melons simply because they've never seen one before. In showing the villagers that their fears are unfounded, the boy teaches children some valuable lessons about fear. Yet unlike so many other children's books, THE CLEVER BOY AND THE TERRIBLE, DANGEROUS ANIMAL doesn't impose its lessons on the young reader, but instead gently offers them up to be digested and understood at the child's own pace. I wish there were more children's books like this one and the others in Shah's delightful series.

The children in our preschool love books with big bold images, lots of strong colors, and a big surprise in the middle. This one is a perfect example. The children especially seem to delight in the idea of a little boy taking what the big people see as brave action in the face of their silly fear that only the little boy can see through. I highly recommend this one.

i have owned this book since i was 16 or 17 years old. nitza was some what of a celebrity in cuba and had her own tv cooking show before food tv network. her recipes are simple to follow (if you can read spanish) and produce dishes that are traditional. with so many jumping on the cuban cuisine bandwagon it's difficult to find books, and restaurants, for that matter, that offer the real mc coy.

Nitza Villapol is considered the Cuban Julia Child. She was the first to write a book used by "the masses" and the first one to have a TV cooking show in Cuba way back in the 50's.

"Through the years Cocina Criolla has turned into the classic cookbook for the Cuisine of Yesterday's Cuba. The young ladies of that era learned to cook from this book and the grandmothers of today are recommending it to their granddaughters. It includes more than five hundred recipes, explained in simple, easy to follow directions to help with the creation of many wonderful dishes in a short time. An indispensable book for lovers of Cuban Cuisine"

The above is the endorsement on the back cover of this book. I can attest to the fact as I was one of those "young ladies of that era" who learned to cook following the instructions in this cookbook.

I remember what first fascinated me about this book was not the recipes, the equivalent charts, the nutrition information, the section on how to measure ingredients or the 2-week menus that she included, but the lists that she had printed on how to equip your kitchen. Even way back then, I always would go ga-ga over kitchen gadgets and equipment, and my dream kitchen would have had one of everything she listed and then some. She included 3 lists; the very basic that everyone should have and then goes on to other items to make your cooking efforts easier and then the specialty items.

Of course, this book was first published a long time ago, back in the mid-40's, so there is a big change in what was basic or special then and what we consider basic now. Remember, this was way before the Cuisinart was even dreamed of!

Picture Cuba....the year was 1953! Even though the family had household help, a young lady was in her mom's kitchen, trying to not make a big mess.......! If the "young lady of the house" wanted to play in the kitchen, it was encouraged as part of rounding off her education, but not necessary. If you did it, it was because you loved it, not because you had to help. (I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way, because even though my father had a very good job, we were not rich by any means)

This book is a traditional gift in my family to any newlywed Cuban-American woman or when moving out of the home (which usually doesn't happen unless married LOL) The recipes are in Spanish, so if you don't speak the language...it's time to get out your Spanish/English dictionary. The recipes are great and recommended by anyone who cooks Cuban Cuisine. All the well known recipes like Tostones, papa rellena, con gris and lechon are all in there and more.

This cookbook is considered a traditional gift for newly-married Cuban American women. Additionally, it is essential for anyone who wants to cook authentic traditional Cuban food. It is written in Spanish and the book provides basic recipes and daily menu suggestions, as well as more elaborate dishes. As a Cuban American woman, I can say that this book contains a great array of staple dishes, and it is a must-have for cooking real Cuban food. I wish an English version were available.