The Society of Illustrators selected art from The Lady in the Box to be included in the 1998 Annual Art Show.
The Society of Illustrators selected art from Prairie Dog Pioneers to be included in the 1998 Original Art Show—an annual juried children’s book show.
La Cucaracha Martina: A Caribbean Folktale was selected as a commended title in the competition for the 1997 Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature.
La Cucaracha Martina: un cuento folklórico del Caribe won the1998 Small Press Book Award for Multicultural Children’s Literature.
The Crab Man was selected as a commended title in the competition for the 1998 Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature.
Prairie Dog Pioneers was selected by the association, Women Writing the West, to receive the first Willa [Cather] Literary Award for the Best Children’s Book of 1999.
BEEP! BEEP! was awarded the Parents’ Choice Foundation’s highest award—a 1999 Parents’ Choice Gold Award.
Reviews
The Lady in the Box “A modern morality tale that never strays too far from the stark reality of homelessness while portraying the generosity and concern of two children for a stranger. Written in direct, disarming prose. . . . “School Library Journal (10/97)
La Cucaracha Martina “Endearingly romantic and humorous in text, this lively read-aloud or read-alone choice will keep youngsters wide-eyed with excitement.”—Review of the Spanish edition, La Cucaracha Martina: un cuento folklórico del Caribe, by Selene S. Vasquez, School Library Journal (11/97)
The Legend of Mexicatl “The illustrator chooses to make the scenes very simple: the realistic depiction of a young man against a background of color that is the stylized landscape; uncluttered vistas and several portraits of Mexicatl—with movie-star good looks—at various ages. The overall effect is to enhance the legend with timeless pictures of strength and beauty. There is food for thought in Harper’s recasting of the legend, which locates the humanity at the center of true leadership.” Kirkus Reviews. (4/98)
Vroom, Chugga, Vroom-Vroom “The rhyming text has a lively beat, and the artwork, which almost seems to zoom off the page, has lots of comical details that little ones will like. An appealing tool for number recognition.” Booklist. (5/1/98).
Prairie Dog Pioneers “This quiet story is based on a true tale of the authors’ relatives. Spearing’s linoleum block illustrations, printed in sepia ink and highlighted with watercolors and colored pencil, emphasize the prairie earth tones and give the book an elegant feel befitting the poignant text . . . . this is a good choice for primary story hours or for classes studying the westward movement.” Booklist.(9/15/98).
The Crab Man “A thought-provoking picture-book debut for Van West, sure to spark lively discussion when shared.” Booklist. (10/1/98).
Keeper of the Swamp “This imaginative story, set in the swamps of Louisiana, draws readers into a mysterious, colorful world. . . . Gutierrez’s excellent translation maintains the highly descriptive vocabulary and lively pacing of the original. Likewise, Chandler’s full-page, brightly colored paintings evoke the setting and nicely enhance the action of the story. An informative epilogue describes the habitat and behavior of alligators and the characteristics of swamps.” Tania Colmant-Donabedian, School Library Journal (5/99).
Alphabet Fiesta “Finding words that begin with the same letter in both English and Spanish is challenging. . . . [O]verall both versions succeed in using the letter of the page consistently while creating a cohesive story. The illustrations, done by grade-school-aged children living in Spain, have a certain primitive charm and freshness. . . . [A]ll of the pictures are big and bright, balancing nicely with the text on the facing page. This is a good tool not only for instruction in the Spanish alphabet but for inspiring art projects as well.” School Library Journal (1/02)