Rubia and the Three Osos

PreS-K—A marvelous retelling of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" with a lively bilingual twist. Rubia makes herself at home while the three osos go out for a stroll. Where the original story concludes with confrontation and flight, Elya's surprise ending offers conflict resolution and friendship. The narrative includes bouncy rhythms and smoothly intersperses Spanish words into the English. This technique helps children use context to determine their meaning. The book will also help preschoolers grasp the concept of opposites while expanding their vocabularies in both languages. Spanish is printed in a purple font, and a glossary is provided in the back. The mixed-media illustrations capture the bright colors of Southwestern landscapes and designs as well as the cheerful tone of the story. Sweet also adds nice regional details, such as Rubia's cowgirl boots and cacti scattered throughout the pictures. An excellent read-aloud for storyhours and family reading times.—Mary Landrum, Lexington Public Library, KY