translator: Aurora Hernandez
illustrator: Ashley Wolff
Tricycle Press,
2007
preschool-grade 2
This lovely
little story-poem shows the youngest listeners, in words and pictures, how all
mammals feed their young. Besides showing human mamas nursing their babies, Mama’s Milk incorporates an amazing
amount of facts about mammals and their young. Did you know, for instance, that
platypus babies are called “puggles,” and that kangaroos make pink milk? (This
information is relegated to the back of the book, so as not to overwhelm the
poem or the illustrations.)
Wolff’s lush
illustrations, rendered in watercolor and ink on a palette of soft, natural
colors, are presented across two-page spreads and on single pages framed by
white borders. They’re calming and lovely; perfect for a quiet, restful
story-poem that mostly shows animal families, both familiar (such as cats and
foals) and less familiar (such as bats and river otters). At beginning, middle
and end, there are human families of varying ethnicities, babies and children
of varying ages, and two pages in which a daddy is present. Here, mama nurses
her baby in the evening, while daddy snoozes next to her. Here, a little girl
munches on a sandwich while she watches her mama breastfeed her infant sibling.
Here, a father holds a toddler as they watch a mama hamster nursing her babies.
One of the most
satisfying things for me is that the English and Spanish versions of each
rhyming couplet are different. Rather than being a hokey “translation” that
often makes the Spanish in a book for children seem like a mere afterthought,
Hernandez’s Spanish is deep and nuanced; it flows beautifully and makes
cultural sense. So, for instance, while an English couplet reads: “Cuddle
little baby, take a rest/ Fall asleep on mama’s breast,” the Spanish reads: “Ven
aquí a mi lado, ven aquí mi amor/ Quédate en mi pecho, duerme sin temor,” which
in English would be: “Come here to my side, come here my love./ Stay at my
bosom, sleep without fear.” As well, the title reflects two distinct cultures:
In English, it’s Mama’s Milk and in
Spanish, it’s Mamá me alimenta (“Mamá
breastfeeds me”). Nicely done in both languages and highly recommended.
—Beverly Slapin
(published 7/4/14)
(published 7/4/14)
No comments:
Post a Comment
We welcome all thoughtful comments. We will not accept racist, sexist, or otherwise mean-spirited posts. Thank you.