Thursday, June 25, 2009

El Barrio



Chocolate, Debbi. El Barrio. Henry Holt and Company, LLC: 2009. ISBN: 9780805074574.

David Diaz's illustrations in El Barrio take the reader on a journey through life in a Southern California barrio with bright and sometimes jarring photographs of murals, textures and mosaics from his hometown. The Day of the Dead Skeleton makes you reel back in shock and takes away from your supposed enjoyment of the book. It is an exploration of Spanish terms that both intrigue and frustrate the reader throughout. A limited knowledge of basic Spanish terms offered a bit of assistance but not enough. A glossary was discovered that was neither mentioned nor placed where you could find it easily. It is assumed that proper placement would be on the inside back cover. El Barrio is an infusion of culture with repetitive text that draws you in and then confuses you. It is a bilingual exploration of family and tradition at la iglesia (the church), mariachi bands, munching on churros (a cinnamon treat) and watching grandparents dance. A child like revelation that his sister is growing up is awkwardly out of context. The question remains as to the enjoyment of the book with the pieced together illustrations, backgrounds that don’t seem to fit and sporadic topics that jump from one thing to the next.


Shannon Leary, Bowling Green State University, EDTL 6950

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