Carlota No Dice Ni Pío (Spanish Edition)

K-Gr 2--Carlota is able to communicate with everyone through gestures and looks, and they understand her perfectly. She doesn't talk---not at school, not with her parents, not even with her mouse Tom. While chasing after Tom, Carlota walks into the pantry, and the door shuts behind her, locking her in. Try as she might, her gestures and looks are not enough to call for help, and Carlota finds she will have to do something she never thought she would need to: talk. Softly at first, then more loudly, the little girl calls for help, and her parents and Tom soon come. Carlota tells them of her experience, and from then on uses her voice---which is revealed to be incredibly beautiful. The jewel-tone, sketchlike illustrations are reminiscent of Quentin Blake's art, and are in themselves as emotive as Carlotta's facial expressions. When she is stuck in the pantry, a humorous scene takes place involving Tom and the family cat. The story is told by an unknown comical narrator, whose parenthetical commentary adds another layer of humor to this unique story. VERDICT A lovely addition to Spanish picture book collections that provides a good introduction to conversations about speaking up.--Selenia Paz