Guacamole

PreS-Gr 3—This fanciful, imaginative narrative is as much poetry as it is a recipe. What makes Argueta's text sing is his liberal use of similes: the avocados are like "green precious stones" and the limes are "round as crystal marbles." As the story progresses, Sada's illustrations change the perspective. When the girl says that it's time to cut the avocados, she describes the pits as "smooth and slippery, like a slide." The illustration shows the narrator and two other children, now smaller than the avocado itself, sliding down the pit and into the hole created by its removal. Succeeding illustrations show the now diminutive children dancing on the table with salt spilled from a salt shaker and playing in the sink while washing the cilantro, which looks like a "little tree." Readers can easily follow the recipe and make guacamole themselves. Adult supervision is encouraged when a knife must be used. This delightful story ends with an eco-friendly encouragement to save the seeds so that more trees can grow: "more colors, more flavors." This selection is as tasty as the treat it describes!—Tim Wadham, Children's Literature Consultant, Fenton, MO