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  • Hardcover: $16.95
  • ISBN: 978-1-56145-425-9
  • Total Pages: 32
  • Size: 11 5/8 x 10
  • Language: Spanish
  • Rights: World, except Korea
  • Status: active
  • Add Format to Cart
  • Paperback: $8.95
  • ISBN: 978-1-56145-532-4
  • Total Pages: 32
  • Size: 11 5/8 x 10
  • Language: Spanish
  • Rights: World, except Korea
  • Status: active

Martina una cucarachita muy linda


Carmen Agra Deedy delivers a deliciously inventive Cuban version of the beloved Martina folktale, complete with a dash of café cubano. Spanish version!

Martina the beautiful cockroach doesn’t know coffee beans about love and marriage. That’s where her Cuban family comes in. While some of the Cucarachas offer her gifts to make her more attractive, only Abuela, her grandmother, gives her something really useful: un consejo increíble, some shocking advice.

“You want me to do what?” Martina gasps.

At first, Martina is skeptical of her Abuela’s unorthodox suggestion, but when suitor after suitor fails the Coffee Test, she wonders if a little green cockroach can ever find true love. Soon, only the gardener Pérez, a tiny brown mouse, is left. But what will happen when Martina offers him café cubano?

After reading this sweet and witty retelling of the Cuban folktale, you’ll never look at a cockroach the same way again.

Author & Illustrator


Author Photo

Carmen Agra Deedy is a New York Times bestselling author and has been writing and traveling around the world telling stories for more than twenty years. Her books, including 14 Cows for America, The Library Dragon, The Yellow Star, and Martina the Beautiful Cockroach have received numerous awards and honors. Carmen has performed in many prestigious venues, but children are her favorite audience. Born in Havana, Cuba, she came to the United States as a refugee and like most immigrants sees the world from multiple perspectives.

You can visit Carmen Agra Deedy’s website here.

Author Photo

Michael Austin, a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi, is a creative director and the illustrator of several books. He lives in Georgia.

You can visit Michael Austin’s website here.


Reviews


“The skillfully crafted acrylic illustrations capture the island's ambience...The text flows easily...” ―Criticas, * STARRED REVIEW *

“Austin's cockroach dwelling is a desirable piece of real estate, with its stairs made of gum wrappers, its wrought-plastic comb railing, and its exclusive mid-Havana address (it's a lamppost). A friendly sprinkling of Spanish words, warmly drawn relationships and a lot of puns all widen the audience for this spirited story.” ―Publishers Weekly

“Deedy's masterful retelling of this Latino folktale has a rollicking voice imbued with sly tongue-in-cheek humor. The acrylic illustrations, in a hyper-realistic style reminiscent of a softer William Joyce, are rendered in a vivid tropical palette. Shifting perspectives and points of view add vitality to the compositions, and facial expressions reveal both emotions and character traits. A scattering of Spanish words adds zest to this fine read-aloud.” ―Booklist

“The humorous use of language, Cuban setting, and beautiful illustrations add to the book's cultural authenticity.” ―REFORMA Newsletter

“...gorgeously illustrated...” ―Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Awards


Virginia Readers' Choice Awards (Master List) ―Virginia State Reading Association 2010-2011

Georgia Children's Picture Storybook Award (nominee) ―University of Georgia 2010-2011

Monarch Award (Master List) ―Illinois School Library Media Association 2011

California Young Reader Medal (primary) ―CRA, CATE, CLA, CSLA 2010-2011