My Pig Amarillo Satomi Ichikawa
Amarillo is Pablito’s best friend. They do everything together-run, hide from each other, jump in the mud. They are inseparable, just like a good deal of best friends. But Amarillo is a bit different-he is a little yellow pig.
When Pablito comes home from school one day and Amarillo isn’t there, Pablito is devastated. Where could he be? Pablito can’t eat; he can’t sleep. His heart feels as if it will break wide open. But Grandfather has an idea, a way for Pablito to send a message to Amarillo, and help him say goodbye to his best friend.
My Pig Amarillo is a beauteous story for children of all ages, full of friendship and love and learning to let go.
From BooklistPreS-Gr. 1. There are a great deal of books when it comes to children losing a pet, but this one when it comes to a boy and his pig has both a softness and luminance that transcends other, more traditional, stories. Youngsters will feel the affection amid Pablito, a Guatemalan boy, and his pig, Amarillo, just from looking at the book cover, which pictures the porker draped over his boy like a child on his father’s shoulders. Pablito received the pig as a gift from his grandfather when it was a tiny baby, yellow in color (hence the name Amarillo). The pig and the boy become fast friends, as a series of vignettes shows. But one day, Amarillo is not in it is hut. The boy is distraught, crying into his pillow, “I am waiting for you to come back, but you don’t.” Nothing comforts Pablito, not even the wooden pig Grandfather carves, until All Saint’s Day. By now it is clear that Amarillo will not return, but Grandfather says they may send a message with a kite on the holiday. Pablito works hard on his kite, sending it into the sky at the cemetery. Then over a mountain appears an enormous cloud. It’s in the shape of a pig, and to Pablito, it seems Amarillo is smiling down at him. Ichikawa uses her Guatemalan setting very effectively, but she likewise wraps the story in universal emotions: love, longing, grief, hope. The pen-and-watercolor art brings children close to all facets of Pablito’s story. On one level, the ending is perfectly realistic: Amarillo is gone. But the miracle of ease is there, too, smiling down in the face of a pig. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
My Pig Amarillo Satomi Ichikawa Pic
My Pig Amarillo Satomi Ichikawa Photo
My Pig Amarillo Satomi Ichikawa Pic
My Pig Amarillo Satomi Ichikawa Image
Most helpful client reviews
4 of 4 humans found the following review helpful.
 My Pig Amarillo
By A
Set in Guatemala, My Pig Amarillo is a gorgeous tale with regards to a boy and his pet pig. Not only does the storyline provide an introduction to the celebration of Day of the Dead in Guatemala, but it is likewise has a tame and hopeful message that teaches children (and adults) a positive way to cope with loss. The lovely illustrations accurately capture the mountainous landscape of Guatemala, the colorful dress of the Mayan people, and the overall simplicity of life in this remarkable country. As a teacher and the wife of a Guatemalan, this book is one of my favorites, and I highly reccommend it.
3 of 3 persons found the following review helpful.
Enriching, Guatemalan story
By M. Quinonez
Being from Guatemala, I am always looking for creative writing of recognized artisti value for my young child. This book has enriched our cultural heritage, not only by the story but with the illustrations. Great book for beginner reader, specially to read on Nov. 1, Dia de Todos los Santos.
1 of 1 persons found the following review helpful.
Great instructing tool for synthesis
By Sylvia Replogle
Hard to find books that instruct children synthesis, but My Pig Amarillo is one you may use. The ending is not the usual happy ending, and therefore, it will cause the class to think a bit. I was very pleased with the lesson plan I came up using this book to instruct synthesis, a tough subject for the 5th grade.
Lovely illustrations, well written, teaches with regards to a new country, I commend this book highly for all elementary libraries, and classrooms.
See all 4 client reviews…
|