A child yearns to join her family's mariachi band in the colorful, jubilant picture book Adela's Mariachi Band by Denise Vega (If Your Monster Won't Go to Bed) and illustrated by Erika Rodriguez Medina (And J.J. Slept).
Adela, a broad-faced girl with winsome dark eyes, brown skin, and a middle-parted ponytail, "loves everything about her family's mariachi band--except the fact that she isn't in it." Papá's trompeta only makes a "small, fizzly" sound when Adela plays it. Her tío's vihuela only squeaks for her. Her graceful mamá and sisters can make their folklórico skirts "flow like rainbows," but Adela's dance ends in a face-plant: "SPLAT!" Each failure is announced by Adela with a tiny, plaintive "oy," "iiieee," or "ahh," copies of her tía Evelyn's massive, soulful gritos ("shouts"). Adela realizes as she sits mournfully amid crayon-scribble recollections of her attempts that every skill in the band will take a long time to perfect. Her exclusion seems certain until Adela realizes she can do one thing, after all. At the end of the next show, Evelyn stands back, Papá places his hat on Adela's head, and she joyously shouts los gritos.
Culture and tradition take center stage as Adela struggles to find her niche, always surrounded and supported by the warm circle of her family. Vega's punchy voice and Medina's lively digital illustrations combine for an affirming reminder that age and size needn't be a barrier to following a passion. Backmatter includes an author's note on Vega's family history of mariachi music and a shortlist of web resources for the intrigued reader. --Jaclyn Fulwood, youth services manager, Allen County Public Library