Cathy Camper

Lina wakes up one winter day to find that the world is covered in white. Concerned for her sitti, or grandmother, with whom she is supposed to make warak enab (stuffed grape leaves), Lina sets out through the snow, discovering many different ways to hear that cold substance as she walks to her grandmother's house. Once there, she discovers that sitti, whose eyesight is failing, has her own ways of hearing and appreciating snow...

A delightful story from Arab-American author Cathy Camper is show more paired with beautiful artwork from Korean-American illustrator Kenard Pak in Ten Ways to Hear Snow, which emphasizes the importance of both family love and having a mindful and appreciative approach to the natural world around us. The central idea embedded in the title here, of finding different ways to hear snow, as well as the fact that snowfall hushes everything, both really struck me, as I woke up this morning to find my house enveloped in a snowstorm. I liked the depiction of a modern, everyday Arab-American family in text and artwork here, and appreciated that, while the cultural details are specific, the human experience in the story - the love of grandparents and grandchildren, the awe at nature's beauty - is universal. Recommended to picture-book readers looking for lovely winter-time tales, as well as those seeking children's books featuring Arab-American families. show less

I really love this graphic novel! It features a group of friends working in a Mexican car repair shop. The characters -- a female mechanic (with horns), an octopus car washer, and a mosquito paint detailer are fun, original, and really positive. The gang are on a fantastic quest to build the lowrider car of their dreams for a contest. Not only does the story take bizarre and creative turns, but it also whole-heartedly embraces its Mexican barrio setting with Spanish phrases sprinkled show more throughout. It is great to have a comic artistically, emotionally, and culturally represents this part of the Latino imagination. I'm a convert! show less

Love, Love, Love this book in the series! New Book in the Lowriders in Space Series has just dropped and its excellent! _Lowriders to the Rescue_ deals with immigration, climate change, gentrification, community building and activism, cross-cultural connections between Latinx and Arab cultures. All while being its typical wiggy self. Illustrated by Raul the Third, who does the Vamos! books, these are drawn with ballpoint pens. It's probably helpful to read the series starting with the show more original, Lowriders in Space, but what I like about this particular one is how optimistic and encouraging it is - that we need to try things and work together for good, and we CAN make a difference! show less

They're back!

The impala - Lupe Impala, master mechanic
The mosquito - Elirio Malaria, the finest detail artist around
The octopus - El Chavo Flapjack Octopus, washcloth-wielding polisher of the Lowriders in Space Garage

If you think lowriders are impractical, think again. When the three amigos from the Lowriders in Space Garage go in search of their missing cat, their rocket-powered lowrider is just what they need. In this second book in the series, the three friends journey to the center of show more the earth and face off against a trickster coyote, an Aztec God, and other legendary Mexican and Aztec foes. As in the first book, they do it with humor, brains, and style—lowrider style—bajito and suavecito (low and slow).

Lowriders to the Center of the Earth is so visually cool, that it looks more like an older brother's indie comic book than a middle grade graphic novel. Raúl the Third uses red, black, and blue ink on sepia pages, and creates expressive faces, wild action, and hidden humor. The illustrations have a distinctly Mexican flair and invite the reader into the culture. His art is a perfect complement to Cathy Camper's hilarious wordplay. It's difficult to imagine that kids can learn Spanish, geology, ancient Aztec culture, Mexican culture, and the virtue of teamwork by reading a book that screams divertido (fun) but they can! Camper's dialogue is sharp and witty, and even features bilingual puns, as in this exchange between Lupe and the trickster coyote.

"Have you seen our cat?"
"Knock knock."
"Who's there?"
"Señor."
"Señor who?"
"Señor cat? I don't think so."
¡Ja, ja, ja!

This book may be even better than the first!

more at http://shelf-employed.blogspot.com/2016/07/lowriders-to-center-of-earth-review.h...

Note: My copy of this book was provided by the publisher at my request when my LibraryThing copy went astray in the mail. show less