Illustrations copyright 2003 by Joe Cepeda
by Marisa Montes
From Booklist
Chicago, IL
Semi-monthly: 33,000
September 1, 2003
For those who don’t know, Spanglish is the mixing of Spanish and English words in sentences. In this story, Gabi speaks English at school and Spanish at home, and sometimes she mixes them up. The plot is minimal: Gabi is being teased by a classmate who rhymes her name in an unpleasant way, and she must find a way to turn the situation around. Serious subject aside, the story overflows with good humor, snappy dialogue, and a recognizable cast of family and school characters. Montes does an excellent job of integrating Spanish words and phrases and defining them naturally within the context of the story. For instance, when Gabi’s brother hints about una sorpresa, the girl responds by saying, “A surprise?” Many children will come away from the book more confident in both languages; for those who need a little more help, a glossary is appended. Cepeda’s pen-and-ink drawings have the same energy as the text, another aspect of this well-conceived offering which is the first book in a new series. -Ilene Cooper
From the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Champaign, IL
Monthly: 8000
June 2003
Montes, Marisa Get
Ready for Gabí!:
A Crazy Mixed-Up Spanglish Day
illus. by Joe Cepeda, Scholastic, 2003 120p
Library ISBN 0-439-51710-9 $12.95
Paper ed. ISBN 0-439-47519-8 $3.99
Recommended Gr. 2-4
Third-grader Maritza Gabriela Morales Mercado (Gabí at home) has a problem—Johnny and Sissy, two of her least favorite people in her class, are her partners for a science project about strange and unusual animals. Johnny is a bully who teases Gabí about her name, Sissy is a snob, and they can't agree on what animal to study. A surprise visit from her grandmother helps Gabí solve her problem: her grandmother gives her a tape of the sounds of coqui, tiny Puerto Rican tree frogs. When Gabí plays it in class, even Johnny and Sissy agree they want to learn more about the strange and beautiful frogs. . . . Gabí and her family are sketched with affectionate detail that makes them particularly attractive . . . and the text is energetic and bouncy, just like the amiable main character; the dialogue is an easy mix of English, Spanish, and Spanglish (a Spanish/English glossary is appended). The cast of characters is decidedly multicultural and the classroom dynamics are, while neat, believable. Short chapters, large typeface, and angular yet jolly line drawings by Cepeda add to the book's accessibility. This is a solid early chapter book (the first in a new series) that knows the audience it wants and reaches it with humor and flair. JMD
From the Monterey Herald (03/2003):
Her name is Maritza Gabriela Morales Mercado, but most of her friends just call the bouncy third grader Gabi. In her debut in what promises to become a long and successful series for former Monterey Peninsula resident Marisa Montes, Gabi has an awful lot on her plate.
As "A Crazy Mixed-Up Spanglish Day" (Scholastic Books. $3.99) opens, Gabi is having a difficult time at school as the class bully, Johnny Wiley, torments her with names like Pizza Face and Blabby Gabby. When she retaliates with a quick kick to her nemesis' shins, a referral goes home and Gabi finds herself in trouble with her parents.
To compound the problem, her teacher puts Gabi and Johnny in the same research group as the class begins a major project. Because of all the stress, Gabi suddenly finds herself resorting to Spanglish. As she uses English words with some Spanish added to them it sounds as if Gabi is speaking Spanish but actually she is not speaking either language.
A talk with her father about solving problems using her brain rather than her "spunky feet" helps Gabi find a way to deal with Johnny's taunts. But it is a gift from Gabi's grandmother that provides the inspiration the third grader needs to successfully resolve the conflict with her infamous classmate.
"A Crazy Mixed-Up Spanglish Day" offers a simple moral for readers 7 to 10 years old. Gabi explains it best at the novel's conclusion when she says, "I spoiled my worst enemy's evil plans. And I did it with my head - not my spunky feet."
Since the story uses an interesting blend of Spanish and English, Montes includes a three page Spanish glossary to assist the reader with any unfamiliar expressions. Joe Cepeda, who has worked with the author on other books, provides the drawings for this delightful story.
Robert Walch
From Kirkus Reviews (3/2003)
A third-grader of Puerto Rican descent, Gabi (the accent comes later) speaks
Spanish at home and English at school. Her mother hates even the slightest hint
of Spanglish-the mixing of Spanish and English-but as pressures mount at school
and Gabi find it difficult not to lose her temper at Johnny, her classmate and
nemesis, it seems she can do nothing but speak Spanglish. Lightweight, but
firmly focused on the everyday trials and tribulations of the spunky Gabi-and
told through her voice-this will appeal to lots of girls, especially Latinas,
who are ready to move out of beginning reader and into their own chapter books.
Both sentences and paragraphs are short and direct, and Gabi's narration
includes plenty of kid-friendly dialogue, sometimes in Spanish or Spanglish, all
of which is explained within the tale. Coupled with the sheer exuberance of
Gabi's family, the narrative voice may have some crying "stereotype," but a
truer comparison
would be with sitcoms such as George López and The Brothers Garcia. Cepeda, who
also teamed with Montes on the picture-book folktale Juan Bobo Goes to
Work (2002), here provides numerous black-and-white line illustrations,
scattered throughout and often worked into the text block. Gabi's almost
triangular haircut-reminiscent of an Egyptian sphinx's headdress-and the gleeful
facial expressions of Johnny and Gabi's little brother Miguelito add to the
generally "hyper" felling of the story itself. A glossary of Spanish terms is
included. (fiction, 6-9)