Under the Mambo Moon

Julia Durango has cleverly written two books in one here. One set of poems, illustrated in black and white, tells the story of Marisol and her Papi’s music store, where the whole neighborhood likes to hang out. Interspersed within that text are poems illustrated in color describing all the Latin dances and music performed at Marisol’s quinceañera. Notes at the end of the book further describe the music and which countries/regions each type comes from. I didn’t know that each type of music [...]

Once again I see that the book committee picked a book based on its appeal to adults and because it is multi-cultural. I do not think that this book will be at all appealing to kids. I will have to work very hard to make it even somewhat appealing.

Hard for me to fall in love with this one. I appreciate the lessons involved with each of the latin dances but the flow of the book didn't work for me.

I thought it was interesting that when people were conversing the illustrations were dull and plain. But when it was a flashback or happy moment, it was vivid bright colors. This book honestly confused me, and I just didn't get it. It jumped around too much and it was hard to follow along.

I'm not sure this would be particularly appealing for a child as pleasure reading, but it might work for in-class use for a poetry unit.

I love the two different styles of illustration that fit very well with the story and the songs.

Honestly, I choose this one because I love the cover illustration. I didn't spot a single kid actually reading it all month long. Classroom ConnectionAs an educator, one of my goals is for my students to experience poetry in a way that will help them understand how to read it and learn to love it. I want my students to learn to read poetry for pleasure. I did not learn to love poetry until I was in college working on my minor in English Literature. As I became a teacher, I wanted to find a way t [...]

I would have to say that this is my favorite poetry book that I found in my search. I really enjoy children's books that accurately represent a particular culture. This book of poems is written by a Latina author and she writes about personal experiences. The poems are cultured, but young students can still relate to them. What drew me the most to this book of poems, however, were the illustrations. This book is full of color, and the illustrations emphasize the theme of each poem. The pictures [...]

This narrative tells the story of a music store and all the different memories that dancing to Latin music from their country brings back to the customers. The narrator, Marisol, is the daughter of the owner of the music store who loves to go and help out her dad. The interesting thing about this narrative is that the way the customers tell you their stories is through poems ("we play our music every night/and practice 'till we get it right"), which is a very nice touch to the book. The books br [...]

Kirkus ReviewDurango’s ambitious, inventive poetry collection on Latino music and dance covers an enticing subject but ultimately tries to do too much.During the summer, Marisol helps her father run his music store. This store attracts a plethora of Latino characters, many of whom long for the music of their home countries. Marisol’s first-person free-verse poem frames 14 one-page poems, each titled after different characters. The book alternates between Marisol’s evening at the store and [...]

This jazzed-up Latino-influenced book is very informative about the culture that Marisol is surrounded by on a daily basis. Each day during the summer, she helps her father run his music store. Each character that enters the store has a particular story which is told in a poetic form. The music and dance of the characters tell the audience of their dreams and memories. As Papi says: "you can read people's souls by the music they listen to; that hearts fly home when the music's just right." Using [...]

Normally I don't read much poetry and even though this book is on the Texas Bluebonnet list I put off reading it thinking it wasn't my kind of book. When I finally got around to it I was pleasantly surprised. The book is a collection of poems highlighting various types of Latin American music: tango, merengue, cumbia, salsa, samba, bossa nova, etc. Told from the viewpoint of Marisol a young girl helping out in her family's neighborhood record/cd store. The book alternates between black and white [...]

There's much to like and appreciate about this combo story-in-verse/poetry book that is an homage to Latin American music of all types. But, as a whole, it did not capture my heart. Perhaps that is because I don't possess the Latin soul necessary for such a connection.I liked the illustrations, both B/W and color. Durango uses the former to show life before/after the music and dance begin and end, I guess to show that the music really gives color to the characters' lives, that if your life has n [...]

This is a great book to use in educational settings but does not seem to be one a child would pick up on his own. I will try to coordinate with music teacher to introduce styles of music and dance and read aloud poetry to help bring this alive for the kids. It's pretty complex - black and white for "story" (which feels historical btw, as where can you find a record store anymore?) and color for the "soul" of each character expressed in different poetry matching his favored music/dance. I found t [...]

Marisol helps her father at his music store and pays attention to the customers who stop by for a little bit of music. As he explains, for many, music is connected to memories and places. Over the course of the evening, she receives a tour of the many different Latin American musical traditions and dances, including the cha-cha-cha, the merengue, the tango, and the vallenato. Back matter includes an author's note and About the Music that explains the different influences on music from this part [...]

Going to use this book for a poetry figurative language lesson and, in my opinion, it missed a great opportunity for onomatopoeia in the music poems. Which, of course, does nothing to detract from the quality of the poetry, just makes it harder for me to develop my lesson.Dec. 31, 2011I really enjoyed the way the illustrator used color for the poems about music and black and white for the day in the life of Marisol at her father's music shop. Interesting back matter about the styles of music men [...]

A poetry book exploring Latino music and dance. A nice INTRO for the audience for which it is intended (as opposed to Roots and Blues which, age wise, misses its mark). Marisol's dad runs a music store, throughout the book we are introduced to a cast of characters who patron the store looking for music from their home countries.Poems range in style (concrete, rhyming etc.) but all will be easily tackled by children (see note above re; Roots and Blues) save a smattering of Spanish words (with no [...]

I liked the flow of the words on the page that made the book come alive with latin rhythm. This book tells a story of a young girl who loves to work at her father's record store in the summer. Throughout the book there are poems interwoven into the main story that tell about the customers that come in the record store. At the end of the book there is a helpful glossary that describes the music mentioned in the book. However, there is a lot of Spanish included in the book and I feel it would have [...]

Rating: 3.5 starsAudience: grades 3-5Story: Poems about different people stopping by Marisol's father's music store looking for the right music to make their hearts fly home. Writing/Illustrations: The store activity illustrations are black and white. As each customer is identified with his/her music selection, the accompanying illustration pops in color highlighting movement to that selection.

This story was told in both regular and poetic narrative. When Marisol is narrating the story it is told just like any other story, but when the customers reminisce their stories are told in poems. This book shows the love of dance in the Latin culture and how the music has a way of bringing them back to their home no matter how far away they are. This could be used in the classroom during hispanic heritage month to teach students of the different parts of the culture.

** Under the Mambo moon is about the little girl Marisol's memories of her fathers music shop and them dancing around every Friday night to Latino music. i would use this book to teach kids about the Latino culture. i like how there are kind of mini short stories in this book but those mini short stories all tie in together. i also like that some of the pictures are black and white and the others are in color.

Under the Mambo Moon allows readers to enter the world of Latin American culture through a variety of poems. Because of the variety of poetry used, there were times when I forgot I was even reading a book of poems. Julia Durango does a wonderful job of introducing her readers to the different dances and musical instruments of Latin America.

the father lets her daughter stays up late at night at a music shop. she talks about her relatives. at the end, she says "sometimes you stay up late at night, have snacks and dance under the mambo moon." it's mainly poetry.

I enjoyed how these immigrant characters from across Central and South America were connected via dance. The descriptions of the dances and how they make the characters feel pulled me into interesting moods and worlds.

"Papi says you can read people's souls by the music they listen to"The opening line sucked me in, and I was enchanted by this juvenile book of music and poetry.A wonderful combination of illustrations and texts made me love Latin dances and music even more than I already do. A lovely book.

Book of poems, told by members of latin community. Each poem describing their love of their native music and dancei.e. samba, mambo, tango, slasa.

Bluebonnet book 2012 - 2013

Marisol helps her father in his music store and learns about the history of Latin music and dance.

Marisol's father says you can "read people's souls by the music they listen to." In this small but lively book, poems introduce readers to the rich heritage of Latin American music and dance.

The illustrations are charming, and the poetry about Latin music and dance are fine. It will likely appeal most to Hispanic readers.