I'll have to practice saying Chupacabra ... ( )

When three goats - clever Jayna, nervous Bumsie and practical Pep - discover that a chupacabra is lurking in the neighborhood, the caprine companions decide to set out to confront their goat-eating adversary, rather than wait for him to come and find them. When the chupacabra eats their candelabra, declaring it his third favorite snack, the goats return home, hoping to find more light fixtures he might enjoy. When the chupacabra comes calling, only to be distracted by a delicious cucaracha, the goats discover that these insects are his second favorite snack. But can they find enough candlesticks and cockroaches to keep him happy, or will he insist on his first favorite snack, presumably goats...?

This new picture-book from author Marc Tyler Nobleman and illustrator Ana Aranda aims to present a humorous fairy-tale smash-up, one which combines folktale elements from various Latin American traditions - I believe the chupacabra was first mentioned in Puerto Rico, although it has now been reported in many other countries - with such classic stories as The Three Bill Goats Gruff, in which the eponymous goats outwit their would-be predator. Here, of course, the resolution is a little bit sweeter, as the chupacabra turns out to have a taste for goat cheese, rather than goats. A great deal of the humor of the story seems to rest on the contrast between the goats' fears and the chupacabra's actual tastes, as well as on the almost-rhyming wordplay of the text. Although I can see how some might find The Chupacabra Ate the Candelabra amusing, I have to admit that I didn't find it nearly as entertaining as I'd hoped to, when picking it up. That said, the artwork, done by Mexican expatriate illustrator Ana Aranda in watercolor, ink, gouache, and other media, is really quite beautiful - colorful, quirky, engrossing - and really added to my enjoyment of the book. Three stars, primarily for the artwork and for the story idea. ( )