Friday, January 27, 2017

MCBD 2017 #ReadYourWorld Lou Lou & Pea and the Mural Mystery (MG)







  MCBD is a non-profit that is in its 4th year


#ReadYourWorld


      Lou Lou Bombay and Peacock (Pea) Pearl are best friends.  When a crime spree hits El Corazon, their neighborhood, just days before Dia de Los Muertos, the day of the dead ceremonies.  Lou Lou and Pea join forces to solve the mural mysteries, the pretty outdoor murals that decorate the outdoor walls of El Corazon, and where the clues keep appearing, but to only those who really pay attention to the murals, like two best friends who just want to help their neighbors.
      I absolutely loved this book, it took me right back to the barrios of San Diego.  I could almost smell the neighborhood Abuelas making tamales and tortillas, ahhh.  I even loved the small mixture of Spanish thrown in, it was awesome how Pea was helping to teach Lou Lou Spanish to better fit into the neighborhood, and even better that Lou Lou was willing to learn.  This book also touches on some of the Mexican customs like the Dia de Los Muertos or day of the dead celebration and the special preparations around that holiday.  Also, the Quinceanera, a very elegant 15 year old girl’s birthday party. 
      This was just an all-round awesome, fun, suspenseful book that also teaches others about some of the Mexican culture and language.
      I would like to personally thank publisher Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, the wonderful illustrator Lesley Vamos, and  most of all author Jill Diamond.  Thank all of you for letting me review this wonderful book and enjoy a peak into the lives of these wonderful friends, I hope they have many more adventures together throughout the years.


Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2017 (1/27/17) is its fourth year and was founded by Valarie Budayr from Jump Into A Book and Mia Wenjen from PragmaticMom. Our mission is to raise awareness on the ongoing need to include kid’s books that celebrate diversity in home and school bookshelves while also working diligently to get more of these types of books into the hands of young readers, parents and educators. 
Despite census data that shows 37% of the US population consists of people of color, only 10% of children’s books published have diversity content. Using the Multicultural Children’s Book Day holiday, the MCBD Team are on a mission to change all of that.

Current Sponsors:  MCBD 2017 is honored to have some amazing Sponsors on board. Platinum Sponsors include Scholastic, Barefoot Books and Broccoli. Other Medallion Level Sponsors include heavy-hitters like Author Carole P. Roman, Audrey Press, Candlewick Press,  Fathers Incorporated, KidLitTV, Capstone Young Readers, ChildsPlayUsa, Author Gayle Swift, Wisdom Tales Press, Lee& Low Books, The Pack-n-Go Girls, Live Oak Media, Author Charlotte Riggle, Chronicle Books and Pomelo Books

 Author Sponsor include: Karen Leggett Abouraya, Veronica AppletonSusan Bernardo, Kathleen Burkinshaw, Maria DismondyD.G. DriverGeoff Griffin Savannah HendricksStephen HodgesCarmen Bernier-Grand,Vahid Imani, Gwen Jackson,  Hena, Kahn, David Kelly, Mariana LlanosNatasha Moulton-LevyTeddy O'Malley, Stacy McAnulty,  Cerece MurphyMiranda Paul, Annette Pimentel, Greg RansomSandra Richards, Elsa TakaokaGraciela Tiscareño-Sato,  Sarah Stevenson, Monica Mathis-Stowe SmartChoiceNation, Andrea Y. Wang


We’d like to also give a shout-out to MCBD’s impressive CoHost Team who not only hosts the book review link-up on celebration day, but who also work tirelessly to spread the word of this event. View our CoHosts HERE.
MCBD Links to remember:
MCBD site: http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/
Free Multicultural Books for Teachers: http://bit.ly/1kGZrta
Free Kindness Classroom Kit for Homeschoolers, Organizations, Librarians and Educators: http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/teachers-classroom-kindness-kit/

 Free Diversity Book Lists and Activities for Teachers and Parents: http://bit.ly/1sZ5s8i

Don’t forget to connect with is on social media and be sure and look for/use their official hashtag #ReadYourWorld.