My Name Is Gabito / Me Llamo Gabito

My wife and I are professors of Latin American literature, and we love this and the other bilingual children's books by Monica Brown. They offer compelling and accurate depictions of prominent Latin American figures from authors (García Márquez, Gabriela Mistral), to musicians (Celia Cruz), to athletes (Pelé). This particular title is perfect for young readers. I can't think of a better way to encourage our children to take an interest in reading the works of one of the greatest authors of our time when they are old enough to do so. The pictures are fabulous, and the capture beautifully the world that García Márquez delivers in his novels and stories. The text in Spanish is a faithful and accurate translation of the English version, which is, unfortunately, not always the case with "bilingual" books.

I bought this and a few other Luna Rising books for my students in Spanish one and two. The fact that they are bilingual makes them less intimidating. The illustrations are wonderful and they get a sort of mini biography of someone important in Latin American literature. I use this and other picture books to facilitate reading and language comprehension while at the same breaking away from the text book. For native speakers it is not particularly difficult, as it is a children's book, but for non native learners the language used is a bit challenging at times. Which is where the bilingual part comes in really handy. It also helps for the intermediate learners, when illustrating that translation is not always 100 % word for word. Overall this book is great just to read in English or Spanish and as a teaching tool if you are up to the challenge.

A magnificent children's book about an incredible talent, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, that students, children, parents and teachers alike will enjoy. The book serves as a nice introduction to this giant of literature. The Nobel Prize winner for Literature, who wrote over thirty books, with such diverse themes and titles as El amor en los tiempos del cólera (Oprah #59), News of a Kidnapping (Vintage International) and One Hundred Years of Solitude (P.S.) has had his books translated into many languages and several made into motion pictures. Before he was well known though he was known as Gabito. This divine children's biography tells of the magical world of Gabito in Colombia where he lived with a 100 year old parrot, who told stories in a haunted house. Gabito also loved to be with his grandfather who introduced him to his love of words. Gabito would imagine a world beyond his, incorporating his childhood experiences into stories for everyone to enjoy. His fantastic imagination began in childhood and this fact should appeal to the young reader. The bilingual text is superb and may serve the student well whose first language is not English. the illustrations are magnificent, especialy the oversized drawings that incorporates two pages with the theme of the imagination. This Luna Rising book is another example of a outstanding bilingual children's book. Author Monica Brown again delivers a beautiful bilingual educational book. If you enjoy this book you may also like some of her other biographies for children like My Name is Gabriela/Me llamo Gabriela (Bilingual): The Life of Gabriela Mistral/la vida de Gabriela Mistral or her award winning book My Name is Celia/Me llamo Celia (Bilingual): The Life of Celia Cruz/la vida de Celia Cruz (Americas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature. Winner (Awards)). This bilingual children's book is highly recommended for K-6 and community libraries.

Monica Brown is an amazingly smart and sensitive writer for children. I heard her speak at a conference, and she puts a lot of care and thought into her books, which are bilingual. She hopes to introduce children to interesting Latino/a people, and I have bought several of these books for my soon-to-be bilingual grandchild. Highly recommended!

Award-winning author Monica Brown presents My Name is Gabito: The Life of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a bilingual English/Spanish picturebook about the brilliant and imaginative writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Following "Gabito" from childhood to adulthood, and his evolution from a dreaming boy to a great storyteller read by millions, My Name is Gabito offers vibrant color illustrations by Raul Colon, featuring a visual texture to the color distantly reminiscent of the swirls of a fingerprint. A wonderful multicultural picturebook, My Name is Gabito features modestly involved text and is ideal for young readers who are just about ready to enjoy chapter books. The flawless Spanish text alongside the English will also appeal to Spanish-language students of all ages seeking to hone their skills and fluency.