Holy Squawkamole!

March 1, 2019

PreS-Gr 1-A take on the traditional "Little Red Hen" story, this time with a Southwestern flavor. Little Red Hen is hungry for guacamole. She has all the makings for tortillas and beans in her cocina, but not for guacamole. When she tries to enlist her friends to help her gather the ingredients, Coati is busy "hanging out," Snake is "all tied up," Armadillo has "gotta jump," and Iguana is "busy basking." But they all promise to "help eat it when it's done, gallinita roja." As with the original story, when the guacamole is ready, everybody is eager to taste it, but "Holy Squawkamole!" they all holler. "That's a smokin' hot guacamole!" Little Red Hen has added a spicy red pepper, which they all enjoy. González's illustrations are colorful. The author includes a story on the origin of guacamole, and how the Aztecs first made it. There is one mistake, though: they could not have used cilantro as it is not a New World plant. The book also includes a recipe and glossary. VERDICT A fun and serviceable retelling that will work well as a read-aloud.-Lucia Acosta, Children's Literature Specialist, Princeton, NJ

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 15, 2019
Somewhere in southern Mexico a hen (who is, of course, little and red) is hankering for some guacamole. But her otherwise-occupied neighbors, who all agree that "Nothing beats a tasty guacamole," won't join in the gathering of the essential ingredients. The coati's "hanging out," the snake's "all tied up," the armadillo's "gotta jump," and the iguana is working on a tan. The hen manages to gather everything she needs, including one giant, red jalapeño--concealing it from the genial but unhelpful cast of characters. When the guacamole is shared all about, the chicken's secret ingredient has her friends blowing their tops. " 'HOLY SQUAWKAMOLE!' they all hollered. 'THAT'S A SMOKIN' HOT GUACAMOLE!' " Wood's retelling of this well-known tale of reaping what you sow meanders along, raising questions throughout. Why are masa and cumin mentioned on the first page when neither is needed to make guacamole? Another puzzle arises from the author's choice for the protagonist. She makes a point of selecting animal sidekicks native to Mexico but misses an opportunity to use the native turkey instead of the standard chicken. Also, there is both misinformation in the appendix (Aztecs did not use cilantro; it likely arrived with the Spaniards) and the confusing addition of Japanese, French, and Caribbean spins on guacamole. González's colorful digital art is generically cute but as texturally flat and lackluster as the story itself.Not, alas, as tasty as its topic. (recipe, glossary) (Picture book. 3-8)

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February 1, 2019
Preschool-G Award-winning picture-book author Wood refreshes a classic folk tale with this Spanish language-inflected rendition in which Little Red Hen, or Gallinita Roja, craves fresh guacamole and needs help harvesting the ingredients. She asks her friends?an armadillo, a snake, and an iguana?for help, but they all refuse to assist (except in eating the guacamole). Without any assistance, she rightfully gets to choose what goes in her recipe, and she decides to add an unexpected ingredient: jalape�o. When the guacamole is ready, her unhelpful friends happily devour it, but they soon catch on to her trick once they realize how spicy Gallinita Roja's guacamole is. Gonz�lez's soft, bright illustrations feature pleasantly rounded creatures with expressive faces, and throughout Wood seamlessly integrates the unitalicized Spanish terms, which are all clear, thanks to contextual clues as well as a glossary. Other backmatter includes fun facts about the history of guacamole and a variety of recipes, including Gallinita Roja's. A nice book to pair with Roseanne Thong's Green Is a Chile Pepper (2014).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)