In the book The Cazuela that the Farm Maiden Stirred by Samantha R. Vamos, illustrated by Rafael López, the story builds up through repetition, like “The House that Jack Built.” This cumulative form is ideal for a story about making a recipe, and for teaching us all some Spanish words (there’s also a glossary at the back). Best of all, the results of the recipe are a surprise! Here Samantha Vamos talks about how a cold Chicago day planted the seeds for her heartwarming tale of many farm hands (and hooves) that come together to make a wonderful meal. How did you come up with the idea for The Cazuela that the Farm Maiden Stirred? We liked the way you taught us Spanish words through the repetition of the story’s events. We liked the part where the cow is teaching the cabra (goat) how to make mantequilla (butter) with her own milk! We also liked when the duck (pato) rides the burro (donkey) to the mercado (market) to buy azúcar (sugar) for the recipe. At first, we didn’t notice the burro’s back! Another thing Rafael did is he made the sun look different in–I think–eight different images, sometimes laughing, sometimes winking. The sun is on each page when the duck appears. Most of the characters had not one but two jobs to do to make the meal. It’s kind of the opposite of The Little Red Hen, isn’t it? Samantha Vamos and her publisher, Charlesbridge, have created an activity guide with ideas that you can do together with your youngster to extend the book’s themes, from math to Bingo cards featuring the Spanish/English words used in the story. Rafael López did the illustrations. Read or BookChat with this fantastic children’s book for free on Readeo during May! Jenny Brown is the editor for Readeo and oversees all book selection for the site. She has worked in the children’s book world for the past 25 years, holding positions with HarperCollins and Scholastic, and was the Children’s Books Reviews Editor for Publishers Weekly. She currently writes for School Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, and Shelf Awareness. Jenny graduated from Princeton University. You can read more from Jenny on her Web site, Twenty by Jenny. |