Gustavo Roldán

Contrary to the popular stereotype of industrious ants, Juan Hormiga likes to nap constantly, waking only long enough to tell his fellow ants long stories of his grandfather's adventures. One day he takes a notion to freshen his catalog of tales by heading out and having his own adventures, and the other ants work themselves up into a frenzy worrying about his safety when the weather takes a turn. It's a long, slow, and dull march to an easily guessed and boring twist.

(On the plus side, this book completes one of my Goodreads projects for the year, reading all the picture books and graphic novels from NPR's Books We Love 2021: Kids’ Books list. It turns out to be a fairly decent list, with 14 books getting my thumbs up and only 9 getting a thumbs down. And I got to finish it reading aloud with my wife and daughter, who had just returned hours before from her junior year in college. It ended the project on a downer, but we fortunately had a couple other books to read at the same time that weren't on the list and were much better: Bodies Are Cool by Tyler Feder and Kunoichi Bunny by Sara Cassidy and Brayden Sato.)… (meer)

El señor del traje rojo nunca había oído hablar de aquel filósofo griego que dijo que no te puedes bañar dos veces en el mismo río. Un día el señor del traje rojo llegó al río de los cocodrilos esgrimiendo un contrato y una botellita de agua del río que acababa de comprar. El cocodrilo mayor no estaba de acuerdo… Gustavo Roldán propone una historia sencilla que nos recuerda que hay cosas que no se pueden vender ni comprar, dándole forma con diálogos vivos y con sus ilustraciones minimalistas, contundentes, dinámicas y expresivas.… (meer)

It's hard not to adore this amazingly, lazy ant and how he finds his very own notch in life.

At 64 pages, this picture book is a bit longer than many, and it's exactly the length it needs to be. Translated from a popular tale in Argentina, the tale revolves around an ant. A very, very lazy ant. What surprised me is that this laziness doesn't glide into the usual message about working hard and such. This tale embraces the ant for who and what he is because despite his weakness, he has a different strength...one not so easily described but horribly important. Especially in a busy anthill.

There are quite a few things, which I enjoyed in this one. (And yep, I'm marking it onto my possible favorite reads for 2021 list because it really is quite good.) First, the illustrations are amazing in their own way...much like the ant and his subtle talent. Done in fine ink strokes, the illustrations stick to only three colors most of the way through. The lazy ant, however, sticks out from the rest, making him very easy to find. Surrounding details are pretty much ignored, leaving each moment to concentrate on what's needed for the story. And it works perfectly. There's even enough personality and humor built in to make each picture interesting and able to tell its tale. But then, maybe it was refreshing just to see a picture book which doesn't pop with a rainbow on every page and still, brings delight.

The tale is simply well-crafted. It's clear this ant has issues, and it has them with no pardon. Nor does anyone bully him or look down on him for it. Instead, they accept him for who he is...but then, this ant does offer something special. Plus, there is adventure and action in its own way. Watching the ants fever for their friend's survival (I'm not giving away anything here), makes the reader worry, too...and yet, there's a undertone of humor to the entire situation. It's a wonderful mix.

This is a well done translation which is sure to become a favorite for more than one young reader. It's universal message is inspiring and shows a real look at acceptance and how some talents are more valuable than they might first appear.

I received an ARC of the translation and love this ant!… (meer)