This rhyming picture book describes the Latin American tradition of honoring the dead in a colorful, celebratory way for children. The text includes many Spanish words for readers to learn in context. Author’s Note, Glossary.

I really enjoyed seeing the illustrations in this book! It was bright and colorful and had cute characters involved. It was fiction drawings, but involved humans and skeletons. It reminded me a lot of the movie Coco! What I really liked about these drawings was that every two pages revolved around a color. For example, the first color was red so almost everything on the page was a red shade. This is definitely a book I’d have in my school library because of the great illustrations. ( )

Author Roseanne Thong and illustrator Carles Ballesteros here present a winsome picture-book celebration of Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, a holiday observed in Mexico and other Latin American countries, in which the spirits of the dead are welcomed back by their families and friends. The rhyming text describes how the day is celebrated, from the special foods and treats that are made to the decorations for the home altars and the cemeteries. The occasion concludes with a dance, which the children attend in costume...

Día de los Muertos is the third picture-book I have read from Thong, following upon her Wish: Wishing Traditions Around the World and Round is a Mooncake: A Book of Shapes, but it is the first I have encountered from Ballesteros, an expatriate Spanish illustrator now living in Chile. I found it an enjoyable, upbeat exploration of a holiday that is becoming more well-known, here in the states. The rhyming text reads well, and makes use of various Spanish words, which are defined in the glossary at the rear, while the cartoon-style artwork captures the joy and happiness of this occasion. I particularly liked the skull-decorated endpapers! Recommended to picture-book readers looking for Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead titles. ( )

I really liked this book for, and for many reasons! First off, I love any book that shows and explains to students the aspects of culture that may be different than their own. This bright, colorful picture book shows pictures and tells stories about a traditional Mexican holiday, Día de los muertos," or in English, Day of the Dead. Students should always be provided with opportunities to expand their knowledge of cultures around the world, as they learn to embrace their own and respect and learn more about those that may be foreign to them. This book has vivid pictures that help elaborate the descriptive text. Another thing I love about this book is its incorporation of Spanish. Most of the words are in English, but just about every line of written text includes a word or phrase in Spanish. Not only that, but this book has a lot of rhyme which adds to its flow. The author rhymes English words with Spanish words as well, which is super cool to see. This book is appropriate for 1st through 5th grade readers. It was a fun read that taught me more about one aspect of Mexican culture through descriptive text and pretty pictures. There is no main idea necessarily, but It just shows children that they can all take it upon themselves to learn about each other's cultures, and also to learn to embrace and love their own. ( )

There is one main reason why I liked this book. The main reason is because of the language. I really enjoyed that this text was bilingual as it used both English and Spanish. I could definitely see this book be a great read for Spanish English Language Learners as they are able to make connections to the text based on the language and cultural context. For example “It’s Dia de los Muertos, the sun’s coming round, as ninos prepare in each pueblo and town.” (p 1). I can already see this text be great for a lot of my students who may be bilingual in Spanish and English as it allows them to use both their languages simultaneously. The message of this book is about the importance of honoring one’s culture and customs. ( )