El cuervito al rescate - Little Crow to the Rescue, Del Sol Books

Author : Victor Villaseñor, Illustrator : Felipe Ugalde Alcántara, Translator : Elizabeth Cummins Muñoz
Preschool - 2nd Grade

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El Cuervito al rescate - Little Crow to the Rescue, Del Sol Books A colorful folktale about the natural world by a renowned Chicano writer.

Little Crow and Father Crow sit on the branch of a tall tree surveying the freshly planted corn field. Father Crow tells Little Crow that the human father and son they see working in the fields do a lot for crows. They plant corn, they move water, and they feed the crows with their fields. The crows sing their gratitude to the farmers, but in spite of their efforts to sing their best songs, the farmers don’t like the crows. As they watch, the tricky farmer bends to get a rock. He hides it by the side of his leg, and when they get in close range, the farmer launches his missile at the crows. But Little Crow and Father Crow are much too fast for him. They fly overhead, laughing and singing. Other crows are not so lucky, like Uncle Fly-Too-Late whose wing was broken when a farmer threw a rock. Little Crow is troubled. What if the farmer picked up a rock when Little Crow wasn’t looking? What if Little Crow couldn’t get away fast enough? Soon, Little Crow has an idea that just might save all the crows.

Listen to Vienna Rose read Little Crow to the Rescue to you. A marvelous example of the magical encounter between a child and books that we wish for all children.

School Library Journal : Grade 2-4–In this traditional tale, recounted by a father to his son, a crow warns his offspring about the treachery of humankind. He explains that, despite all that they have learned about survival from animals in the wild, humans cannot be trusted to remember the debt they owe to them. As Father Crow lectures on, he warns the youngster against letting a farmer who has bent down and picked up a rock get close enough to throw it. Little Crow draws his own conclusions. It would be wise, he tells his father, if the birds were to fly away any time they spot people. To this day, a flock of birds will take to the sky rather than let a human stray too close. The story comes full circle with the man explaining, So, you see mijo, this is why you can never catch a crow. The English and Spanish texts are presented on the same page, separated by a small picture. Both texts are grammatically correct and well crafted. The colorful stylized illustrations resemble patchwork quilts or stained glass.

Booklist : PreS-Gr. 3. Villasenor shares a childhood story, passed down from his great-grandfather. A boy tries to catch the crows eating the chicken feed, but the birds always take wing. The boy's father tells of a father crow and his son, perched at the side of a cornfield. Father Crow tells Little Crow that, despite crows' love for humans, people show little affection in return. Father Crow's advice: fly away if you ever see a human pick up a rock. Although Little Crow watches and learns from his father, he adds his own spin to his father's advice. Alcantara's intensely colored, stylized art shows a natural world full of bright sunlight, richly shadowed crow feathers, and backgrounds with subtle layers of color. The Spanish translation is thoughtfully done, appropriately colloquial, and resembles the English in its pacing. The text isn't particularly lyrical in either language; the book's strength lies in its traditional origins, its striking illustrations, and the overall message that, occasionally, children can teach their parents a thing or two.