Gracias • Thanks

Review
By Kirkus Reviews

From “the sun that wakes me up so I don’t sleep for years and years and grow a long, white beard” to the “old pajamas, so soft they feel like I’m putting on air” and “the cricket hiding when he serenades us to sleep,” a little Latino boy says “¡gracias!” with sweetly ingenuous enthusiasm. Mora has a keen sense of the concrete, child-friendly detail, and it’s put to splendid use here. Readers will find themselves nodding in agreement as the unnamed narrator gives thanks to the ladybug that lands on his finger, the bees that don’t sting him and his little brother, who throws mashed peas at their sister. Parra’s folk-art–style acrylics evoke a suburban neighborhood replete with twining morning glories, green lawns and red-tiled roofs. The flat perspectives and bright colors skillfully complement the child’s voice. Domínguez’s Spanish translation precedes the English text of this bilingual tale on each spread, a thoughtful touch that honors both the book’s creators and its Latino audience. For this graceful celebration, ¡gracias!