Mexico (Spanish)
168
Comotto (= Agustín Comotto) (text/illus.)
Siete millones de
escarabajos (Seven million beetles)
México, D.F. : Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2001. - [40] p.
(Los especiales de A la orilla del viento)
ISBN 968-16-6380-2
Beetle - Birthday – Family
What happens when seven million beetles decide to embark on a great,
dangerous journey over the seas to congratulate their beloved cousin Marcelo on
his birthday? That's what this picture book tells us with wit and a
twinkle-in-the-eye sideswipe at the sometimes overwhelming sympathy of the »dear
family«. With great originality and spirit, Comotto creates a busy
million-bustling-beetles-world. His sketchy, edgy, scrawly, and caricaturesque
lines bring to life a repulsive, creepy, yet equally fascinating character cast.
Limiting himself to the tones of black, grey and white, he courageously goes
against the conventional aesthetics of picture books. (4+)
(Premio A la orilla del viento ; 2000 ; Libro ilustrado)
169
Gedovius, Juan (illus.)
Morado al cubo
(Sticking to the dice)
México, D.F. : Alfaguara, 2000. - [30] p.
(Alfaguara infantil)
ISBN 968-19-0751-5
Dice – Chance
When you open this book, you will be faced with a bunch of bizarre and
prehistoric-looking gnomes, giants, and dinosaurs: furry and bristly ones,
green-skinned and wrinkly ones, teeny-weeny and massive creatures. By chance, a
dice happens to be thrown into this world. It starts poking the giant's foot,
then it happily thrives in a flower-pot-like deformity on the gnome's head,
serves as dragon food, and finally ends up with the angry giant again, who
originally wanted to get rid of it. This simple circular tale without words
fully focuses on the characters, only adding a few minor details. The
illustrations powerfully strike the imagination because they leave ample room
for the readers' own crazy ideas and mental experiments. (4+)
170
Jaeger Cordero, Silvia
El huevo azul (The blue egg)
Monterrey, Nuevo León : Ed. Castillo,
2000. - 119 p.
(Castillo de la lectura) (Serie verde)
ISBN 970-20-0127-7
Tyrant - Power - Dream – Prophecy
Even though timeless like a fairytale, this story is undoubtedly inspired
by the myths of the Aztecs, the ancestors of today's Mexicans. The mighty
governor Tutul impels his subjects to acknowledge him as their absolute ruler
and insists on being henceforth addressed by all - even his omnipresent Ara - as
»King Tutul«. At the peak of his power, Tutul dreams a mysterious dream.
Instead of announcing his fortune, as anticipated, this dream, which in truth is
an ancient prophecy, predicts the fall of the despot. The poetic, figurative
language and the humorous narrative of this story make this an entertaining read
even for younger readers. (7+)
(Premio de Literatura Infantil y Juvenil »Castillo de la Lectura«)