Gina Freschet

Beto is excited for the upcoming Day of the Dead celebrations, helping his father to prepare their ofrenda (altar) to honor his recently deceased grandmother. He wonders what he can add, either to the ofrenda or to his abuela's grave site, that will represent his own connection to her. Everything he thinks of seems to have already been provided by his aunt and uncle and cousins. Then, during the nighttime celebration in the cemetery, he falls asleep and dreams he is dancing with his show more grandmother, awakening with an idea of what he can do...

Pairing an engaging and ultimately heartwarming story with brightly-colored, light-infused illustrations, Beto and the Bone Dance is a lovely celebration of Día de los muertos, emphasizing its importance as a moment of connection with deceased loved ones. Young readers will undoubtedly empathize with Beto's determination to add something personal, something of his own, to the family remembrance of his grandmother. My only criticism of the book is the statement, early on, that the Day of the Dead is called Halloween in many places. Although they coincide, and are both tangentially related to All Hallow's Eve, I think this statement is factually incorrect - Halloween and the Day of the Dead are very different holidays - and I think this could be confusing for children. With the caveat that adult readers be prepared to correct this misinformation, I recommend this one to picture-book readers looking for Day of the Dead stories. show less

Another sweet and sad book, it made me tear up at the end. Beto lives in Mexico, and his favorite holiday is el dia de los muertos, the day of the dead. On this special day he and his family are going to pay respects to Betos recently passed abuela by making her an altar and filling it with all the things she loved in life. Beto is worried because he can't think of anything to add to the altar. Beto falls asleep waiting for the celebration to start and he dreams that he is dancing with the show more skeletons. In his dream he also sees his hrandmother and she tells him that what she loved most of all was him (this is where I teared up). So Beto puts a picture of himself on his Grandmother's altar. A very sweet book that not only shows children a fascinating new ritual, but also shows the importance of family, whether they are still with us or are here only in memory. show less

Impulse. No ferris wheel in the book. :( Also, despite it being published in 2003, it feels dated, w/ references to mood rings and soap-on-a-rope. More advanced than most early readers. Illustrations appropriately casual, not classic. Worth reading, imo, though just for the indoor garden party salvaged when fickle spring dumped snow on them.

Beto’s favorite holiday is el Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead. Although he enjoys the celebrations, he struggles with finding the perfect gift to honor his departed grandmother. The book does a good job of introducing Spanish terms to young readers, and Freschet’s surreal illustrations give the book a dream-like quality. It's difficult to find a book that celebrates this important Latin-American holiday without focusing on the "death" aspect of it. But this one is more about the show more tradition, and it focuses on Beto's desire to impress his family and honor his grandmother. show less