Mud Tacos!

Would you eat a wormy, squirmy mud taco?

Marissa loves her big brother, Mario. He always comes up with fun ideas. When playing in their nana's backyard, they decide to make some wormy, squirmy mud tacos. That gives Mario an idea-how about some real tacos for lunch. Before long it is off to the store with Nana, but first they must pick up their cousins Rosie and Chico. When Chico starts acting like a hotshot to prove that he is a big kid, can his cousins, with the help of a few mud tacos, show him how to have some real fun?

Would you eat a wormy, squirmy mud taco?

Marissa loves her big brother, Mario. He always comes up with fun ideas. When playing in their nana's backyard, they decide to make some wormy, squirmy mud tacos. That gives Mario an idea—how about some real tacos for lunch. Before long it is off to the store with Nana, but first they must pick up their cousins Rosie and Chico. When Chico starts acting like a hotshot to prove that he is a big kid, can his cousins, with the help of a few mud tacos, show him how to have some real fun?

Kirkus Reviews

Mario, an ingenious boy, is spending the morning at his Nana's house along with his little sister, Marissa. In the backyard, he finds a cardboard box and quickly arranges it to simulate a table at a restaurant. Then he invites his sister to order anything she likes; when Marissa orders tacos, Mario makes them from leaves, mud and flower petals. Two more guests join Mario's imaginary restaurant-his cousins Chico, who considers himself too big to pretend, and Rosie. At the end, all of them are hungry and ready to eat Nana's real "meaty, messy, cheesy, spicy, crispy, crunchy" tacos. Inspired by their memories of playing together, siblings Lopez and Wong tell a simple tale that celebrates the twin pleasures of childhood, food and imagination. Roos's cartoon-style illustrations, the presence of a Nana-in Hispanic cultures, traditionally a loved old babysitter-and the original game around the very popular Mexican dish will especially make children of Latino background feel culturally connected with the characters and the story. (Picture book. 3-8)

From actor to host, producer to writer, Mario Lopez has already made his mark on Hollywood. He is the host of EXTRA and MTV's America's Best Dance Crew. A dancer himself, Lopez took the runner-up title on the third season of ABC's Dancing with the Stars and completed his first run on Broadway as the much-loved character Zach in A Chorus Line. A well-known face in television, notably for his work on NBC's Saved by the Bell and USA network's Pacific Blue, Lopez guest stars as Dr. Mike Hamoui on the F/X network's popular show Nip/Tuck and starred in the highest rated program in ABC Family history, Holiday in Handcuffs, and also opposite Mark Consuelos in the made-for-TV movie Husband for Hire. Lopez is also a recurring commentator on HBO Boxing and authored his first book, Knockout Fitness. He lives in Los Angeles.

Marissa Lopez-Wong was born and raised in Chula Vista, California, where she grew up loving her big brother Mario and her large Hispanic family. She currently lives in Houston, Texas, with her adoring husband, Kailee Wong, a retired NFL player, and their three beautiful children, Makai, four, Kalia, two, and Mailee, six months.

Maryn Roos has illustrated many books for young readers. She lives in Utah.