A Song of Frutas— Un pregón de frutas

Written by Margarita Engle.

Illustrated by Sara Palacios. 

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Print length: 40 pages

ISBN-10: 1534444890

ISBN-13: 978-1534444898

Reading age: 4 - 8 years

Grade level: Preschool - 3

From Pura Belpré Award–winning author Margarita Engle comes a lively, rhythmic picture book about a little girl visiting her grandfather who is a pregonero—a singing street vendor in Cuba—and helping him sell his frutas.

When we visit mi abuelo, I help him sell

frutas, singing the names of each fruit

as we walk, our footsteps like drumbeats,

our hands like maracas, shaking…

The little girl loves visiting her grandfather in Cuba and singing his special songs to sell all kinds of fruit: mango, limón, naranja, piña, and more! Even when they’re apart, grandfather and granddaughter can share rhymes between their countries like un abrazo—a hug—made of words carried on letters that soar across the distance like songbirds.

Un pregón de frutas

Cuando visitamos a abuelo, lo ayudo a vender frutas,

pregonando los nombres de cada una

mientras caminamos: nuestros pasos repican como tambores,

nuestras manos, cual maracas, que suenan

agitan los brillantes colores de las frutas…

Vivo lejos de abuelo,

pero podemos cantar rimas

de ida y vuelta entre nuestros dos países,

nuestros versos en papel vuelan como aves cantoras,

cada sílaba un abrazo

hecho de palabras.

Review

"Palacios' beautiful artwork renders the city in rich, saturated colors with bustling crowds of people set against brightly hued buildings . . . Engle deftly weaves Spanglish through the conversational text . . . an author's note [enhances] the experience of this heartfelt read. . . " -- Booklist, Starred Review

"Palacios’ vibrant illustrations beautifully capture the joy and liveliness of the event. . . A joyful celebration of Cuban tradition and family ties." -- Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

"Palacios gives a visual richness to the spreads, portraying streets teeming with people of various skin tones talking, dancing, and buying. . . Engle’s mix of Spanish and English flows easily off the pages.”   -- Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Engle’s text is rich in sensory details . . . Palacios’s digital illustrations are characterized by soft lines and warm colors that augment the positive mood throughout. . . Fond reminiscences and a nuanced cultural depiction make for another warm ode to Engle’s beloved isla." -- Horn Book Magazine

Margarita Engle is the Cuban American author of many books including the verse novels Rima’s Rebellion; Your Heart, My Sky; With a Star in My Hand; The Surrender Tree, a Newbery Honor winner; The Lightning Dreamer; and Wild Dreamers, a Pura Belpré Young Adult Author Honor book. Her verse memoirs include Soaring Earth and Enchanted Air, which received the Pura Belpré Award, a Walter Dean Myers Award Honor, and was a finalist for the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction, among others. Her picture books include Drum Dream Girl, Dancing Hands, and The Flying Girl. Visit her at MargaritaEngle.com.

Sara Palacios is the recipient of a Pura Belpré Illustrator Honor for Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match and the illustrator of several other picture books, including A Song of Frutas, The Flying Girl,and Martina Has Too Many Tías. Sara graduated with a degree in graphic design and went on to earn BFA and MFA degrees in illustration from the Academy of Art in San Francisco. A native of Mexico, Sara now lives in San Francisco. Visit her at SaraPalaciosIllustrations.com.