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beths0103's review
3.0
This book deals with a very controversial topic and so the reactions to it are going to be polarized. For this reason I think a book like this would be a wonderful place to start in discussing the issue of illegal immigration with older students. Proof yet again that picture books aren't just for young readers.
megatsunami's review
4.0
I might give this book 5 stars if it weren't so heartbreaking to read. Is that unfair? I don't know, but a children's book about the inequities between "the North" and the rest of the Americas, and the injustices that take place in the course of attempting to come North, is bound to be painful to read. Thankfully this story ends on a happy but not perfect note. Definitely well written and I liked the art.
crystal_reading's review
4.0
This is a book that would be great to open up discussion of immigration in a classroom or in a family. I was surprised to see a book about families illegally crossing the border written for a young audience, but it worked. I think it could certainly be used with older students too as a quick way to get into the topic.
summerashley's review
A great story for children to relate to their parents immigrating for work to the US from Mexico! Completely relevant to today’s communities and a great book highlight cultural diversity!
mjfmjfmjf's review
4.0
This is my favorite so far from the author. I still don't particularly like his art. But it works for the story. This is told like a folktale but maps fairly well to real-life. And as always, with a pretty good afterword. And really how many children's picture can I name covering the story of undocumented folks crossing the Mexican/US border...
froggylibrarian1's review
4.0
Pancho Rabbit’s father must travel to the North to work and then send money back to his family. The family hears that he is returning and prepares a party but then he doesn’t show up. Pancho decides to go looking for his father. Taking his father’s favorite foods he sets off. He soon meets a coyote who offers to help but as they meet obstacles the coyote demands that Pancho give him the food he brought. Finally, when the food is gone, the coyote threatens to eat Pancho. Fortunately, Pancho’s father hears his screams and comes to rescue him.
In the author’s note we find out that the coyote is actually a slang term for someone who helps immigrants get from Mexico to the US so this story takes on a whole other level as a story of migrant workers sneaking into the US.
I thought this was a very interesting book. On one level the story of Pancho and the coyote was very similar to other trickster type tales. It was evident that the coyote was going to end up trying to eat Pancho. I knew something else was going on and that it had to do with migrant workers but it wasn’t until I read the author’s note that I saw the tie in completely. The only thing that bothered me was the ending. Pancho is rescued by his dad, they travel back and celebrate, but then they talk about how the father will have to go back North if it doesn’t rain. Pancho says he will go with him. It ends with the mother saying she hopes it rains. To me the ending seemed abrupt…but maybe it was supposed to be.
In the author’s note we find out that the coyote is actually a slang term for someone who helps immigrants get from Mexico to the US so this story takes on a whole other level as a story of migrant workers sneaking into the US.
I thought this was a very interesting book. On one level the story of Pancho and the coyote was very similar to other trickster type tales. It was evident that the coyote was going to end up trying to eat Pancho. I knew something else was going on and that it had to do with migrant workers but it wasn’t until I read the author’s note that I saw the tie in completely. The only thing that bothered me was the ending. Pancho is rescued by his dad, they travel back and celebrate, but then they talk about how the father will have to go back North if it doesn’t rain. Pancho says he will go with him. It ends with the mother saying she hopes it rains. To me the ending seemed abrupt…but maybe it was supposed to be.
desirosie's review
4.0
While I understand the role of using anthropomorphic animal stories to introduce difficult topics for kids, sometimes I worry that might actually make it harder for (a child at the right age) to get the point.
suzannekm's review
4.0
may be too scary for some children. But it's an important story wonderfully illustrated and told.
nerfherder86's review
4.0
A picture book about a rabbit boy who travels north from Mexico into "El Norte" to find his father, who left to find work but hasn't returned, with help at first from a literal coyote, who later turns against him when he can no longer give the coyote any food in payment. The author's note describes the migration situation and gives resources. It is illustrated in Tonatiuh's usual flat, stylized, colorful artistic style, using collaged texture patterns.