!Vamos! Let's Go Eat by Raul The Third and colors by Elaine Bay

Genre: Bilingual Picture Book

Age Group: 4 - 7 years old

Summary: Little Lobo has been tasked by the great luchadora El Toro to pick up the lunch orders of all the wrestlers before the big match. We get to join Little Lobo on a delicious journey through the town's food trucks as he picks up all the orders.

I was in search of a Pura Belpre award winner to fill the requirement. With this book I did just that but I also found a fun, colorful, funny and bilingual picture book that I would greatly recommend to others. This book has a warm and inviting appeal that draws the reader in and leaves them wanting more. I cannot wait to see where Raul the Third takes us next with Little Lobo. (Another bonus: the Spanish vocabulary I am able to learn while reading this book.) Review:

I love the styling and coloring of ¡Vamos! Let’s Go Eat. It’s so vibrant and warm transporting readers into the world of the Latinx and Hispanic culture that is surrounding the book. The style of drawing is also simple. I find that simplistic drawings can be more relatable to children and ones that they can eventually begin to attempt to draw themselves. Simplicity also gives way to the fun and upbeat nature of Little Lobo’s tale. It’s interesting that while the drawing style is simple, you’re finding something new with each turn of the page. Reading and re-reading the book, I find myself finding something new on each page giving it a bit of as Where’s Waldo and I Spy vibe.

I enjoyed how the bilingual aspect of the book was thrown into the story. It did not follow like one would think of a typical bilingual book where you have the native tongue written out first and then you have the English translation underneath throughout the whole story. That type of bilingual style is here and there in certain places of the book. Like on the first page for instance and when Little Lobo finally arrives to take the meal orders of El Toro and the rest of the luchadores. But you will also notice the use of Spanish thrown in when the characters are speaking in English. You will also notice it being utilized in the illustrations of the environment of the town and the food trucks. Such as when they arrive to the food truck park and the trucks are brightly painted and showcasing the Spanish language, along with customers and vendors being shown using the Spanish language as well. The way Raul the Third switches up the use of the Spanish language keeps me engaged as a reader and has me using context clues to translate when there is not an English translation right next to the Spanish usage. It provides a bit of a challenge but it is also rewarding when through the use of clues and the images you are able to piece together the meaning.

The storyline was great as it introduces the reader to all the wonderful food that Little Lobo’s town has to offer. Raul the Third manages to do this in an engaging way that is not boring for the reader. You do not think of yourself as learning as you join Little Lobo on his journey through the food truck park picking up the orders. It does not feel like learning and that’s what feels cool about this book. The learning does not feel forced but rather organic. There is something great to be said for a story that draws you in and you just happen to learn something along the way.

I would highly suggest this book to my colleagues, those with children and those who just enjoy picture books. My only suggestion would either be to have some snacks nearby or not to read on an empty stomach because this book had me salivating for food after reading.

Third, R. the, & Bay, E. (2021). ¡Vamos! Let's Go Eat. Versify.