Module 5 - Los Gatos Black on Halloween by Marisa Montes

Montes, Marisa. Los gatos black on Halloween . New York: Henry Holt And Company, 2006. Print.

Genre Category: Picture Book
Source: Pura Belpré, 2008
Age Range: Ages 8 to 12
Assessment of the book’s quality: Introduces spooky arrays of Spanish words; truly frightening and creepy, detailed illustrations accompanied with spooky rhyming text.
Assessment of the book’s potential use with children: The book is a perfect source to be used during the Halloween period for storytime, read aloud and as a display in the library. It can be encourage to be checked out for pleasure reading as well, as it has the potent capability to create that spooky Halloween aura.
Assessment of the book’s child appeal: Appealing for children who love Halloween picture books and poems on ghouls and ghosts, werewolves and witches, and all things scary.

Summary:
The story is about a black cat who walks around on Halloween night and sees all sorts of spooky creatures fit for Halloween - ghosts and ghouls, witches and vampires, more cats, werewolves and corpses - all gathering for their yearly bash at the local haunted house as midnight strikes. They dance and cavort until they are frightened by children the the scariest monsters of all who come trick-or-treating at the door. The story is told in equally spooky rhyming text, incorporating Spanish words for the spooky words (i.e. los fantasmas (ghosts), los esqueletos(skeletons).

Reaction and Impressions:
The illustrations are really marvelous. Their emphasis is on dead - skeletons, ghosts and gouls - are really scary and create an authentic aura for Halloween. They so scary that may not be appropriate for children under 8. For older children however, this can be a thrill as it really serves the spookiness of Halloween. There is significant Mexican influence and elements in the paintings and the story such as Day of the Dead Celebration. This smooth incorporation of Spanish spooky words into the text is also amazing as it not only adds a zest and spice to the story but also in a natural way forces children to learn and memorize Spanish words.



"A cat's green eyes stare out from the book's cover. Inside, there are more of los gatos--as well as las brujas (witches), los fantasmas (ghosts), and los esqueletos(skeletons looking like they have come from a Dia de los Muertos celebration. The pithy, rhyming text tells a frightening, if familiar, story. The ghosts and ghoulies are off to a Monsters' Ball at Haunted Hall, and though there's plenty of scary stuff around, the guests are most frightened by the children who come knocking at the door for trick-or-treat. Montes' evocative poem deserves exceptional artwork, and Morales obliges. Her soft-edged paintings glow with the luminosity of jewels, and her witches, werewolves, and corpses are frighteningly executed. Therein lies what may be a problem for preschoolers. These fiends aren't particularly kid-friendly; they are dead-eyed, Day of the Dead folk who scare. For slightly older children, however, this spookiness is what Halloween is all about. The Spanish is neatly integrated into the text, but for those who need clarification, a glossary is appended." _ Booklist - Ilene Cooper


"[Montes]composes serviceable stanzas, using English and Spanish words as synonyms: "Los gatos black with eyes of green,/ Cats slink and creep on Halloween." This dual-language approach can be redundant ("At medianoche midnight strikes..."), yet Morales (Harvesting Hope) holds readers' attention with surreal, faintly macabre spreads in dim turquoise and clay-brown hues, illuminated by fuschia and flame orange."_ Publishers Weekly.