Put on your dancing shoes and get ready to rumba! Boogie in the Bronx hit bookshelves one week ago today!
I became a huge fan of publisher Barefoot Books when my girls (who are both teenagers now) were very young. This new picture book, written by Jackie Azúa Kramer and illustrated by Jana Glatt, embodies all the qualities that have kept me a fan through the years. The art is bold and bright, with equally engaging rhyming text, full of music and movement. As a bonus, it's a singalong! Sung by Sol y Canto to music written by Brian Amador, the song (which mimics the text) and an accompanying animated video can be accessed through a QR code at the end of the book, or here!
Although not apparent from the title alone, this book is also a counting book (with numbers and some short phrases in both English and Spanish) and an introduction to Latin, Afro-Latin, and African American dance--all set within the walls of a diverse high-rise apartment in New York City...
Once you listen to the song, you'll also realize that it's an introduction to the rhythms that go along with each the 10 featured dances, including salsa, reggaeton, and conga. The spread below, featuring tango, is one of my favorites. I especially love how the paint brushes of the artists are gliding right along with them as they dance in their apartment...
One more thing I've always loved about Barefoot Books is that the characters in their books have been from diverse backgrounds for as long as I've been reading them, which means representation has been important to them for a very long time.
To that point, I really appreciated the acknowledgment in the back of Boogie in the Bronx thanking a director of diversity education, a disability consultant, a pronunciation consultant, and a dance consultant for their expert advice in creating this book. So, with that...
I hope you've still got your dancing shoes on. Let's dance! Vamos a bailar!
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