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El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day), commonly known as Día, is a celebration of children, families, and reading, commemorated on April 30th. Día is a nationally recognized initiative that emphasizes the importance of literacy for all children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds. Celebrate children and connect them to the world of learning through books, stories, and libraries! Polk County Public Libraries offers bilingual (Spanish/English) books for children, and books in Spanish for all ages. 

 

Water Rolls, Water Rises (El agua rueda, el agua sube) by Pat Mora

Here is a poetic ode to the beauty of the natural world as expressed by the movement and moods of water on Earth. With every evocative verse, we visit one of fourteen different water landscapes and cultural areas around the world, each stunningly illustrated with a breathtaking view of a place of natural beauty and conveying a sense of the drama, joy, power, serenity, grandeur, or peacefulness of water. From the Grand Canal of Venice to Qutang Gorge in China, from the Sahara in Morocco to the Andes of Chile, we learn about the world through the lens of water, our most precious, life-giving resource.

 

I’m Hungry! (¡Tengo hambre!) by Angela Dominguez

When a bluebird comes upon a dinosaur who’s down in the dumps, he asks what’s wrong. “¡Tengo hambre!” says the dinosaur. I’m hungry! Does the dinosaur want a banana? ¿Plátano? Fish? ¿Pescado? Nothing seems to do the trick! What do dinosaurs want to eat? This delightful bilingual picture book is about finding just the right food–and just the right friend.

 

Belinda Lifts Her Voice (Belinda eleva su voz) by Luisa Orellana-Castillo, Brizel Martinez Cruz, and Camila Melany De la Luz Villegas 

Written by first-generation Latinx teens, this book follows Belinda, a young girl of Mexican and Salvadoran heritage who once loved to sing. But ever since her aunt’s death, Belinda has been afraid to use her voice. When a new owner decides to paint over the mural that was created to honor her aunt, Belinda rallies the entire community together to stop it. Can Belinda lead her community and lift her voice to save Tía’s mural? From the shy reader to the young activist, this endearing story uplifts our future leaders.

 

Don’t Eat Me, Chupacabra! (¡No me comas, Chupacabra!) by Kyle Sullivan

Little Chupacabra is a picky eater with a monstrous appetite for only one thing: goats. This is a huge problem if you happen to be a goat. Set in gorgeous Puerto Rico, this delicious tale of compromise features digestible Spanish vocabulary, a menagerie of animal amigos, and one determined — and hungry — Chupacabra.

 

Galápagos Girl (Galapagueña) by Marsha Diane Arnold

This story was inspired by the childhood of Valentina Cruz, whose family was one of the first permanent inhabitants of the Galápagos islands. Valentina makes a promise to protect the islands and her animal friends.

 

Jen Pace Dickenson is the Youth Services Librarian for Polk County Public Libraries. For information about the library’s resources, programs, and other services, visit polklibrary.org or call (828) 894-8721.