Mama Graciela's Secret | Book Review
This book by Author Assistant was given to me for an honest review
Mamá
Graciela’s Secret
Written by Mayra
Calvani
Illustrated by Sheila Fein
MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing
www.maclaren-cochranepublishing.com
Illustrated by Sheila Fein
MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing
www.maclaren-cochranepublishing.com
Description:
Mamá Graciela’s TENDER, CRUNCHY, SPICY
bacalaítos fritos are the best in town...
Local customers (including stray cats!) come
from all over the island to enjoy her secret recipe. But when the Inspector
discovers that Mamá secretly caters to so many cats and he threatens to close
her tiny restaurant, Mamá must come up with a plan to save it—and all of the
animals she loves.
About the author:
Mayra Calvani writes fiction and nonfiction for
children and adults and has authored over a dozen books, some of which have won
awards. Her children's picture book, Frederico the Mouse Violinist was a
finalist in the 2011 International Book Awards; her anthology Latina Authors
and Their Muses was a First Place winner at the 2016 International Latino
Book Awards; her nonfiction book, The Slippery Art of Book Reviewing,
was a Foreword Best Book of the Year winner. Her stories, reviews, interviews
and articles have appeared on numerous publications like The Writer,
Writer's Journal, Multicultural Review, Bloomsbury Review, and others.
She lives in Belgium with her husband of 30+
years, two wonderful kids, and her three beloved pets. When she's not writing,
editing, reading or reviewing, she enjoys walking with her dog, traveling, and
spending time with her family. www.MayrasSecretBookcase.com
About the illustrator:
Born in Queens, New York and living in Los Angeles since 1987, Sheila Fein has always been inspired by the changing world around her. Earning her BA in Design from Buffalo State College of New York, her concentration was on drawing, painting, printmaking, and photography. Sheila's education as an artist has taken her everywhere from Fleisher Art Memorial in Philadelphia to Bath University in England. Today, Sheila Fein runs two figurative workshops, Imaginings Sketch in LA and People Sketchers in Thousand Oaks. She has been featured in numerous collections, magazines, books, solo and group exhibitions. Her paintings and drawings reside in public and private collections. Sheila loves to make the imagination of others a reality and has done so through her commissioned Fein Fantasy Portraits and Interactive Paintings. In addition to being a fine artist Sheila works as an illustrator. She just completed the book "Mama Graciela's Secret" for Maclaren-Cochrane Publishing.
I do not remember the last time I read a picture book, but it was so nice to read one again. Mama Graciela's Secret is a really sweet book about a sweet abuelita that does what she loves and protects what she loves.
Even though the story is less than 25 pages long I actually gasped when the someone threatened to take Mama Graciela's cats! Even though it is a children's book with very little prose Calvani was able to get me invested in Mama Graciela's story. At the end I felt proud of her decision at the end of the adorable picture book.
Born in Queens, New York and living in Los Angeles since 1987, Sheila Fein has always been inspired by the changing world around her. Earning her BA in Design from Buffalo State College of New York, her concentration was on drawing, painting, printmaking, and photography. Sheila's education as an artist has taken her everywhere from Fleisher Art Memorial in Philadelphia to Bath University in England. Today, Sheila Fein runs two figurative workshops, Imaginings Sketch in LA and People Sketchers in Thousand Oaks. She has been featured in numerous collections, magazines, books, solo and group exhibitions. Her paintings and drawings reside in public and private collections. Sheila loves to make the imagination of others a reality and has done so through her commissioned Fein Fantasy Portraits and Interactive Paintings. In addition to being a fine artist Sheila works as an illustrator. She just completed the book "Mama Graciela's Secret" for Maclaren-Cochrane Publishing.
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Review
I do not remember the last time I read a picture book, but it was so nice to read one again. Mama Graciela's Secret is a really sweet book about a sweet abuelita that does what she loves and protects what she loves.
Even though the story is less than 25 pages long I actually gasped when the someone threatened to take Mama Graciela's cats! Even though it is a children's book with very little prose Calvani was able to get me invested in Mama Graciela's story. At the end I felt proud of her decision at the end of the adorable picture book.
Rating: 4/5
Simply a girl who loves tea, blogs about her ever exciting life and wants to make her dreams come true.
Thank you so much for your lovely review, Ally! Glad you enjoyed the book! :-)
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