bumbleb3e 's review for:

La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Middleton Elya

4.0

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With a Latino twist on the story “The Princess and the Pea,” Elya and Martinez-Neal’s Pura Belpre award-winning picture book, creates an enjoyable cross-cultural exploration of classic fairy tales. Through the use of acrylics, colored pencils, and graphite on handmade textured paper – which the illustrator identifies on the end page – Martinez-Neal creates illustrations “inspired by the weaving and embroidery of indigenous people of Peru.” This unique folk artistry style incorporates Latino culture into the familiar setting of a fairy tale, easing children into an unfamiliar world through the lens of the familiar. Elya also incorporates Latino culture in her text, intermixing English and Spanish vocabulary into her retelling of the story. Rhyming couplets create a poetic lilt to the text and include both English and Spanish rhymes – “Several were pin-striped, some made of fleece; others were dotted or checkered or gris.” The illustrative style that mimics indigenous weaving and embroidery interacts with the Spanish text to create a retelling of “The Princess and the Pea” that centers its focus on revealing Latino culture to young readers. As well as this cultural twist, Elya also rewrites the end of the story to include a humorous reference to the prince’s agency in making sure the princess passed his mother’s test; he stuffed pitchforks and stones in “la cama” without his mother’s or the princess’s knowledge. Due to its familiar fairy tale context, this picture book presents an engaging way for young readers to interact with an unfamiliar culture – stunning illustrations and language that reflect indigenous culture provide children with an opportunity to explore and question both the familiar and unknown.