Joining Los Pollitos/Little Chickies in Susie Jaramillo's endearing Canticos series of Latino nursery-rhyme board books, Elefantitos/Little Elephants is a delightful and energetic read-aloud or sing-along, especially during bilingual story times.
"One little elephant
balanced oh so elegant
right on the web of a spider..."
"Un elefante
se balanceaba
sobre la tela
de una araña..."
A second elephant joins the first on the precarious tightrope of a spider's thread, and then a third and a fourth. In this cleverly designed "reversible" board book, a traditional Mexican counting song comes alive in two languages; the book's accordion design features the verses in Spanish on one side and English on the flip side. (A sturdy cardboard case keeps those accordion pages contained.) The growing parade of pachyderms, each identifiable by subtle differences in her ears, is increasingly desperate to hold on to the spider web. Will the thread support three elephants? Four? Five? As the suspense builds, preschoolers can break the tension by pulling tabs to make the elephants' trunks and ears wag. The rhythmic, rollicking tune (as heard on the app) is as catchy as can be. --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor