Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Oh No, Gotta Go! by Susan Middleton Elya

Oh No, Gotta Go! by Susan Middle ton Elya, illustrated by G. Brian Karas

Rating: 4 stars

Is my daughter the only preschooler who thinks s/he can speak Spanish (or another language)?  We watch Handy Manny once-ish a day, and we've read a handful of bilingual books over the year.  I avoid Dora like the plague (sorry if you're a fan--Lorelei loves her but her little voice drives me crazy.  I try to focus on the positive like maps, adventure, and helping, but...it's just not my favorite) so...where does this interest come from?!  I wonder if it's a natural part of language learning; there are other languages out there being spoken other than your own.  As a culturally-minded mom (and a former Peace Corps Volunteer) I don't mind this at all.

So this book fell in our laps.  Not literally, of course.  It is mostly English with a smattering of Spanish words thrown in.  The text rhymes, making it even easier for Lorelei to remember big chunks of the book.  That's a good thing, because the first few times we read it together she only remembered, "Where is un bano?  Donde esta?"  I was about ready to slip the book in the night return box in the library after tucking her in...  But, after a few weeks, she remembered a whole lot more.

The story is funny and cute; a little family of three get in the car to go somewhere and the little girl suddenly has to go to the bathroom.  I find it really amusing that it's the father who is responsible for forgetting to remind her (we moms never would!) but of course they promise to find one quickly.  They drive around the city until the find a restaurant, at which they quickly park, run in and...run smack into a long line!  They beg forgiveness to skip to the front, and the little girl "comes out with a smile."  They eat at the restaurant, but the little girl focuses more of her time and attention on the limonada, so we all have a big laugh when, after getting back into the car, she asks: "Where is un banoDonde esta?"

No comments:

Post a Comment