Alicia and the Hurricane / Alicia Y El Huracán: A Story of Puerto Rico / Un Cuento de Puerto Rico
Bestselling author Lesléa Newman offers a tender and timely story of a Puerto Rican child facing a hurricane and her concern for the beloved coquíes of her home island.
La autora de bestsellers Lesléa Newman ofrece un tierno y oportuno cuento de una niña puertorriqueña que enfrenta un huracán y su preocupación por los amados coquíes de su isla natal.
After snuggling into bed each night, Alicia listens for the big voices of the tiny coquíes that live all around Puerto Rico and sing her to sleep. Ko-kee, ko-kee, the little frogs call. Ko-kee, ko-kee.
One day a terrible hurricane comes to Puerto Rico, and Alicia and her family take refuge in a shelter. At bedtime Alicia hears grown-ups snoring and babies crying, wind howling and rain pounding. But even though she listens hard, she cannot hear the song of the coquíes. Are the little tree frogs safe? And what will Alicia and her family find at home when the storm is over?
Alicia and the Hurricane is a tender look at the resilience of people, and native creatures, whose lives have been disrupted by a natural disaster. With love and support, family and friends come together to share, rebuild, and fill Alicia's heart with hope. Ko-kee, ko-kee!
Después de acurrucarse en la cama cada noche, Alicia escucha las formidables voces de los diminutos coquíes que viven en todo Puerto Rico y le cantan para que se duerma. Co-quí, co-quí cantan las ranitas. Co-quí, coquí.
Un día un terrible huracán viene a Puerto Rico y Alicia y su familia se cobijan en un refugio. A la hora de dormir, Alicia oye los ronquidos de los adultos y el llanto de los bebés, el aullido del viento y el golpetear de la lluvia. Pero a pesar de que escucha con atención, no puede oír el canto de los coquíes. ¿Estarán a salvo las ranitas? ¿Con qué se encontrarán Alicia y su familia cuando la tormenta haya terminado?
Alicia y el huracán es una mirada sensible a la tenacidad de la gente y otras criaturas de la naturaleza cuyas vidas son afectadas por un desastre natural. Con amor y apoyo, las familias y los amigos se reúnen para compartir, reconstruir y llenar el corazón de Alicia de esperanza. ¡Co-quí, coquí!
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Lesléa Newman is the author of eighty books for readers of all ages. She has received numerous awards for her work, including two Stonewall Book Award Honors, two National Jewish Book Awards, the Massachusetts Book Award, and a creative writing fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. From 2008--2010, she served as the poet laureate of Northampton, MA. Visit her online at lesleakids.com.
Elizabeth Erazo Baez is a Puerto Rican visual artist who is inspired by the greenery of Puerto Rico and the beauty of its landscapes. As a result, her paintings focus on tropical scenes and portraits of the Caribbean. She also works as an elementary school art teacher. Baez lives with her family in Miami, Florida. You can find her online at baezfineart.com.
Georgina Lázaro adapted the English text of Alicia and the Hurricane into Spanish. She is a Puerto Rican poet who has written poems that introduce children to Frederico García Lorca, Pablo Neruda, Miguel de Cervantes's Don Quixote, and other mainstays of Hispanic/Latinx culture and tradition. She also writes and translates children's books. Lázaro lives with her family in Ponce, Puerto Rico.
"While reading this book I was taken back to the fear and uncertainty of the days before and after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017. Like young Alicia, I also noticed the silence that invaded the nights. Like Alicia, I missed the sound of the coquí, a little frog-like animal whose voice resonates every night as a reminder that we are in Puerto Rico, and how proud we are to be Boricuas. Like Alicia, I also felt that the silence of the coquí meant that hope had been lost. But young Alicia teaches us that when the people of Puerto Rico began to help one another, the coquí began to sing again. And that song is a symbol of the strength and love that we show when we stand up for each other. Alicia and her family remind us that if we are together, HOPE, like the song of the coquí, will be ever present in our lives." -- Carmen Yulín Cruz Soto, Mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, 2013--2020; Weissman Fellow, Mount Holyoke College, 2021
"Este cuento me acordó el miedo y la incertidumbre que sentí los días antes y después de que el Huracán María destruyera a Puerto Rico el 20 de septiembre del 2017. Como la pequeña Alicia, yo también note el silencio que invadió las noches. Como la pequeña Alicia, yo también noté el silencio que invadió las noches. Como Alicia, me hizo falta el sonido del coquí, una pequeña ranita cuya voz resuena en la noche y nos recuerda que estamos en Puerto Rico y que estamos orgullosos de ser boricuas. Como Alicia, sentí que el silencio del coquí quería decir que ya no quedaba esperanza. Pero la pequeña Alicia nos enseña que cuando la gente de Puerto Rico se ayuda los unos a los otros, el coquí comienza a cantar. Y esa canción es símbolo de la fortaleza y el amor que demostramos cuando estamos juntos. Alicia y su familia nos recuerdan que, si estamos unidos, la esperanza, como la canción del coquí, estará siempre presente en nuestras vidas." -- Carmen Yulín Cruz Soto, alcaldesa de San Juan, Puerto Rico,2013--2020; Weissman Fellow, Mount Holyoke College, 2021
"Alicia's character represents Puerto Rican strength, and her story demonstrates how family and hope can move one forward in beautiful ways." -- Booklist
"Illustrations aptly convey Alicia's emotional journey as well as the bright, tropical colors of Puerto Rico. The layout of this bilingual book foregrounds the Spanish translation by Lázaro. . . and the English text includes Spanish words readers can understand from context, as cognates, or using the book's glossary." -- The Horn Book
Best Books of the Year 2022 - Center for the Study of Multicultural Children's Literature
Best Children's Books of the Year in Spanish 2023 - Bank Street College of Education
Delaware Diamonds Awards 2023 - Diamond State Reading Association
Junior Library Guild Selection 2023
