Primer día en las uvas 
By L. King Pérez
Illustrated by Robert Casilla
9781584302407
All year long Chico and his family move up and down the state of California picking fruits and vegetables. Every September they pick grapes and Chico starts at a new school again. Often other children pick on him — maybe because he is always new or maybe because he speaks Spanish sometimes.
Chico's first day in third grade turns out to be different. His teacher likes him right away, and she and his classmates are quick to recognize his excellent math skills. He may even get to go to the math fair! When the fourth-grade bullies confront Chico in the lunchroom, he responds wisely with strengths of his own.
Readers of all backgrounds will relate to Chico's bravery and the creative way he finds to resolve conflict. Translated from First Day In Grapes, Primer día en las uvasis a story of personal triumph and a testament to the inner strength in all of us.
- Awards
-
Best of Beyond Difference
Vermont Center of the Book
Pura Belpré Illustrator Award Honor
ALSC/Reforma
"Choices"
Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
Notable Children's Books
Smithsonian Magazine
- Interest Level
- Grades 2 - 5
- Reading Level
- Grades 2 - 3
- Themes
- Bullying, Discrimination, Farming, Immigration, Latino/Hispanic/Mexican Interest, Overcoming Obstacles, Self Esteem/Identity, Sharing & Giving
- Accelerated Reader
- Level: 3.2
Points:
L. King Pérez has won many awards for her fiction and poetry. In addition to writing, she accompanies visiting authors to their appearances around Dayton, Ohio, where she and her husband live.
Robert Casilla is the illustrator of several books in Holiday House's "A Picture Book..." biography series, as well as many award-winning books, including Jalapeño Bagels (ALA Notable; Atheneum), Daddy Poems (Children's Choices; Boyds Mills), and The Little Painter of Sabana Grande (Reading Rainbow Book; Bradbury). A full-time illustrator, Casilla earned his BFA at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. He lives in Yonkers, New York, with his wife and their two children. To find out more about Robert Casilla, visit his Web site: www.robertcasilla.com
