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Title details for The Coquíes Still Sing by Karina Nicole González - Available

The Coquíes Still Sing

A Story of Home, Hope, and Rebuilding

by Karina Nicole González
Krystal Quiles
Audiobook
2 of 2 copies available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
2 of 2 copies available

"This book is more than beautiful." - Yuyi Morales, Caldecott Honoree and New York Times bestselling creator of Dreamers

A powerful story about home, community, and hope, inspired by the rebuilding of Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria in 2017, written by debut author Karina González and illustrated by Krystal Quiles.
Co-quí, co-quí! The coquí frogs sing to Elena from her family's beloved mango tree—their calls so familiar that they might as well be singing, "You are home, you are safe." But home is suddenly not safe when a hurricane threatens to destroy everything that Elena knows.
As time passes, Elena, alongside her community, begins to rebuild their home, planting seeds of hope along the way. When the sounds of the coquíes gradually return, they reflect the resilience and strength of Elena, her family, and her fellow Puerto Ricans.
The Coquies Still Sing is also available in Spanish.

Pura Belpré Honor Book for Children's Text
Pura Belpré Honor Book for Children's Illustration
A Chicago Public Library Best Picture Books of 2022 selection
A Macmillan Audio production from Roaring Brook Press.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Awards

  • Release date

    June 27, 2023

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781250900746
      • File size: 4283 KB
      • Duration: 00:08:55

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from September 26, 2022
      One family’s resilience amid disaster is the soaring note in this full-throated tribute to Puerto Rico’s survival following Hurricane María. At sunrise, amid the rural lushness of the child’s mountain home, narrator Elena climbs atop a corrugated roof to pick from Abuela’s mango tree, its fruit, writes González, “the sweetest snack.” “And when night falls, a song fills the air”—the serenade of the coquí frogs—to which Elena responds, “Co-quí, Co-qui. Oh, how I love thee.” That love proves sustaining as a hurricane tears the roof from the family’s house and defoliates the countryside. The family emerges, “wet and scared, but we are alive,” in a picture book that centers garden as gathering place, “where seeds of hope are planted.” Quiles communicates abundance, joy, and loss through expressive brushwork: the jewel-toned gouache and acrylics, finished digitally, produce detailed, almost-pluckable mangoes, while rough strokes depict the coming-apart of the fabric of daily life. Endnotes convey the larger message: self-determination for Puerto Rico. Available in English and Spanish editions. Ages 4–8.

    • School Library Journal

      October 1, 2023

      PreS-Gr 2-Gonz�lez's debut received 2023 Pura Belpr� Honors for both text and illustration. The audio arrives almost a year after the print, lyrically performed by softly accented G�mez (who narrates both English and Spanish editions) over an enhanced background soundtrack-a mango dropping, radio reporting, coqu�es singing. Elena lives in Puerto Rico, enjoying the "many gifts" of her family's shady mango tree, joining in the nightly songs of the endemic coqu� frogs. Despite all the precautions, a hurricane causes devastation throughout their island, even silencing the coqu�es. "They will come back and so will all of this," Papi promises. Months of grueling work unite and strengthen their community; the coqu�es finally sing again. VERDICT Gonz�lez reveals the sober reality of Hurricane Maria's massive 2017 island-wide destruction, and the U.S.'s failure to respond adequately to its own territory. Her lauded book-in any language-provides an inspiring, affecting antidote.

      Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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