My Very Own Room/Mi propio cuartito
Five little brothers, two parents, and a houseful of visiting relatives make a Mexican-American girl feel crowded. She loves her family, but how can she get a little space for herself? The solution comes when her family turns a small storage space into a room just for her.\ \ \ With the help of her family, a resourceful Mexican American girl realizes her dream of having a space of her own to read and to think.\
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Five little brothers, two parents, and a houseful of visiting relatives make a Mexican-American girl feel crowded. She loves her family, but how can she get a little space for herself? The solution comes when her family turns a small storage space into a room just for her. Publishers WeeklyTired of sharing a room with her five brothers, an eight-year-old Mexican American girl longs to find a corner of the house she can call her own ("a place where I could read the books I loved, write in my diary, and dream"). She persuades her mother to let her take up residence in a storage room, and the whole family gets involved in refurbishing the new space. An uncle who is heading back to Mexico donates his bed; one brother finds a wooden crate to use for a bookcase--and the books come from the library. Based on Perez's own childhood, this bilingual picture book paints an affectionate portrait of life in a big family that often provides a home base to newly arriving relatives and friends ("There was always a long line to use the bathroom, but the toilet seat was always warm") and offers strong testimony to the heroine's resourcefulness. Gonzalez's (Angels Ride Bikes and Other Fall Poems) warm palette, simple lines and uncluttered images flow through the story like a series of murals. This inspiring tale will resonate with anyone who's ever wished for a room of one's own or worked hard to achieve an important goal. Ages 6-up. (Aug.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\|
\ Publishers Weekly\ - Publisher's Weekly\ Tired of sharing a room with her five brothers, an eight-year-old Mexican American girl longs to find a corner of the house she can call her own ("a place where I could read the books I loved, write in my diary, and dream"). She persuades her mother to let her take up residence in a storage room, and the whole family gets involved in refurbishing the new space. An uncle who is heading back to Mexico donates his bed; one brother finds a wooden crate to use for a bookcase--and the books come from the library. Based on Perez's own childhood, this bilingual picture book paints an affectionate portrait of life in a big family that often provides a home base to newly arriving relatives and friends ("There was always a long line to use the bathroom, but the toilet seat was always warm") and offers strong testimony to the heroine's resourcefulness. Gonzalez's (Angels Ride Bikes and Other Fall Poems) warm palette, simple lines and uncluttered images flow through the story like a series of murals. This inspiring tale will resonate with anyone who's ever wished for a room of one's own or worked hard to achieve an important goal. Ages 6-up. (Aug.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\|\ \ \ \ \ Children's LiteratureBased on the author's own childhood, this story details the familiar tale of having to share a room with siblings. Narrated by the oldest daughter in a family, a nine-year-old who shares a room with her five younger brothers, the book tells of a loving family of eight with big hearts and a small house, a house which seems even smaller when relatives from Mexico come to visit or live until they find their own homes. The narrator tells readers that while this always means a line for the bathroom, there are advantages as well, such as a constantly warm toilet seat. While wandering around the two bedroom house, the young girl realizes the area behind a curtain dividing the living room from a storage area would make a perfect bedroom. Her mother reminds her that the things stored there must be saved for other family member who will someday need them, but the determined girl persists. Finally, her mother suggests putting the things under a tarp on the porch. The remainder of the tale shows the whole family helping to transform the space into a real bedroom for the little girl. With the text presented in both Spanish and English and its endearing, warm illustrations, this book would add to any bilingual reading collection or school library. 2000, Marwin Productions/Children's Book Press, \ — Ramirose Ilene Attebury\ \ \ School Library JournalK-Gr 3-In the tradition of Elizabeth Starr Hill's Evan's Corner (Puffin, 1993), the nine-year-old protagonist of this story longs for a room of her own in the crowded house she shares with her parents, five brothers, and frequent guests. When the child sets her sights on a small storage closet, the whole family helps to make her dream room a reality. This bilingual book is based on an incident from the author's childhood, and it reads more like a brief autobiographical essay than a picture book. The story lacks tension since the main conflict is resolved quickly, but it does show that a child's need for privacy doesn't preclude being a loving family member. Gonzalez's rich, robust illustrations heighten the otherwise quiet story. Smiling Mexican-American children with rounded body curves and widened facial features march across pages splashed with bold brush strokes of primary colors. A deserving purchase for bilingual and larger picture-book collections.-Denise E. Agosto, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\ \ \ \ \ From The CriticsBased on her experience as a young Mexican-American girl in California, Amada Perez' My Very Own Room recounts a visit by a swarm of relatives to her family's small home, already fully occupied by five brothers, two parents, and herself. She loves her family, but how can she get a little space of her own? The thoroughly charming text is bilingual (Spanish/English) and pleasantly illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzales with bold colors and whimsical details. My Very Own Room is a highly recommended picturebook story of family and a young girl's dreams.\ \
