Latino Rainbow

School Library Journal

Gr 3-6-This collection of 20 poems in picture-book format introduces aspects of Latino culture in the United States. The chronologically arranged selections range in topic from the colonization of California by the Spanish, to Ellen Ochoa, the first Latina astronaut. Cumpin's poetry captures with interesting rhythms, some of the most dramatic moments of the history between Mexico and the United States. One of the last poems refers to Guatemalan, Salvadoran, and Nicaraguan refugees-``Our people have become refugees/because of strong earthquakes, high floods,/diseased water, or no rain;/because mean people/took control and wanted to rule/without caring about clinics,/food markets, or even schools.'' Leonard uses a muralist style to depict the personalities introduced. The backgrounds, often heavily colored in earth and sepia tones, allude to the subjects' accomplishments. The poems will allow children to discover for themselves these interesting events and figures of importance to the Latino culture in this country.-Graciela Italiano, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona