ENDPAPER/COPYRIGHT?

DESIGN TK
Possible Art Direction – we’d like to see the illustrator do something warm and special
with this book, whatever they imagine that can be. One possible approach -black and
white illustration with pops of color and the color begins to fill the pages more and more
as the protagonist realizes how rich his history is, letting the feel of the culture seep
through.

by Alma Flor Ada illustrated by XXX XXX

On my first day at my new school,
Abuelita had a secret.

A secret I would not find out until it was too late.

I could smell Abuelita’s famous breakfast. I am I said.
As soon as I walked into the kitchen, mom said
“Are you excited for your first day at your new school?”

Excited? I thought. I didn’t want to eat but Abuelita’s breakfast was good.
Mom kept talking. “All the kids will talk about themselves. “I saying a thing.”
You will get to know everyone,” she said.
“I won’t know anyone there,” I said.

Everyone was looking at me,

except Abuelita. She was humming
in the kitchen, her purple shawl
wrapped around her shoulders.
She would understand.
I dragged myself upstairs to get dressed.
“You have a lot to say, Gabriel,” Rosa said, following me.
“Just tell them all about me . . . or Alfonso, mom, and grandma.

You can take my pictures of Canela and Manchadito too!

“What’s so interesting about a sister or a brother, or pets,”
I said. “I’m talking about my family,” I said.
Then I heard mom call. “Take a seashell,” Abuelita said.
“Gabriel, it is time to go.” “Tell them about the beach we went to.”
“Kids go to beaches all the time, Abuelita.
Why would they care about seashells?

As I came downstairs,
Abuelita was at the door
holding my backpack.
I passed a big bowl that
smelled like the sea. I do it, I thought.
Suddenly Abuelita whispered in my ear. “When your teacher asks you to talk,
open your backpack,” said Abuelita.
“That’s it?”
“That’s it.”
This wasn’t the secret I was hoping for.

“I’m going to tell you a secret and you must remember this.”
“What is it Abuelita?”
Abuelita had good secrets. I was curious.
When I got outside, “I got it! You can tell them we went to Cuba
Alfonso threw a ball to me. to meet our family there,” said Alfonso.
“They’ll love hearing about that!”

“They won’t know where Cuba is,”

Gabriel said. “Forget it.

telling them about the trip.”

In class, everyone told stories about themselves.
Then my teacher turned to me.
I was in the spotlight.

“Your turn, Gabriel.

What are you going to share with us today?”
What was I going to say? I looked at my backpack.
All the other kids had interesting stories. Something purple was sticking out of it.

Maria adopted a dog.

Jason went to a big amusement park. Then I remembered Abuelita’s words.

I opened it and dumped everything on the table. A map of Cuba unfolded all by itself,
The seashells went there was Canela and Manchadito,
and my whole family looking up at me!

And Abuelita’s purple shawl. But where was the secret?

I held my breath so long, I thought I would turn purple.
Then, everyone began picking up things.

“Whoarethepeople
in this picture?”
asked Maria.

“Gabriel these
seashells are
cool!”saidJason.

“Ohwhatasoftshawl!
Purple is my favorite
color,”saidhisteacher.
I looked around at my new friends.

Maybe I did have something to say.

“This is my abuelita Lupe, my dad’s mom.
She’s Mexican, and she always wears a purple shawl,”
It is her favorite color.”
“And this is my mom. She’s Cuban, and she took
us to meet her family in Cuba,” Gabriel said.

“When we were there, I found these seashells at the beach . . . ”

I wonder what other secrets Abuelita has for me.
ENDPAPER/COPYRIGHT? DESIGN TK