Lola

February 1, 2018

K-Gr 3-When Ms. Obi asks her students to draw a picture of the country they are originally from, the children are excited. All except for Lola, "What if you left before you could start remembering?" As Lola talks to some of her neighbors from the Island to draw from their memories, she learns of bats as big as blankets; a love of music and dancing; coconut water and sweet mangoes. And an island where "Even the people are like a rainbow-every shade ever made." With a place so beautiful, Lola wonders, why did people leave? Reluctantly, Mr. Mir, the building superintendent, tells her of a Monster that fell upon their Island and did as he pleased for 30 years. Though never mentioned by name, the country in question is the Dominican Republic. The Monster refers to the dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo. Lola learns from her assignment that "Just because you don't remember a place doesn't mean it's not in you." Espinosa's gloriously vibrant mixed-media illustrations portray a thriving community living under the shadow of the George Washington Bridge in Manhattan. As Lola learns more about her Island, the illustrations cleverly incorporate a plethora of tropical plants and color, bringing to life both Lola's neighborhood and La Isla. Lola, a Spanish language edition, is ably translated by Mlawer and publishes simultaneously. VERDICT A sensitive and beautiful story of culture, identity, and belonging-a superb picture book outing for Diaz and one to be shared broadly in a variety of settings.-Lucia Acosta, Children's Literature Specialist, Princeton, NJ

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 15, 2018
Grades K-3 *Starred Review* Lola doesn't know much about where she's from. When senorita Obi asks the class to draw a picture of their home country, Lola must ask the people in her neighborhood what they remember about the island. This first illustrated children's book written by Pulitzer Prize-winner Diaz is an extraordinary tale of the power of collective storytelling. At the beginning, Lola feels down because she doesn't remember the island as well as her friends remember their homelands. But that soon changes as she hears from her neighbors about the bats the size of blankets, the rainbow people, and even the monster that once terrorized the island. With this last bit of information, Diaz introduces the concept of dictatorship in an accessible manner, opening the door to conversation between children and adults. The Spanish in this edition of Islandborn feels familiar and representative of the community of which Diaz writes. Espinosa's illustrations beautifully center Afro-Latinidad, which is something that is lacking in other children's books about Latinx people. Such representation is seen in the skin color of Lola and her neighbors and Espinosa's technique that gives hair visible texture. This rich celebration of heritage and diversity will spark curiosity in young readers to learn their own family histories.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)