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Polvo solar
En su impresionante debut como autor-ilustrador, Zeke Peña ofrece un vistazo inmersivo y fantástico de su ciudad natal, El Paso, donde el sol reina sobre el desierto vasto y le da forma a todo lo que toca.
Donde termina la barda de piedra, empieza el más allá del desierto.
El desierto alberga flora y fauna única que se ha adaptado a vivir bajo el sol intenso, haciéndole un paisaje sin fin para el libre andar de dos hermanes curioses. Llantas viejas descartadas, nopaleras antiguas que piden ser escaladas, rocas enormes que enseñan cómo aquietarse y escuchar. La lluvia trae un bienvenido alivio del calor, seguido por el lodo que lentamente se seca en la piel, cuarteándose como barro, llegando al punto donde es difícil saber dónde terminan los niños y dónde empieza el desierto.
Polvo solar es el debut como autor-ilustrador del aclamado dibujante de Mi papi tiene una moto; celebra los lazos que se desarrollan entre una persona y su ciudad natal a través de texto preciso y lírico, y paisajes deslumbrantes del desierto.
Edición en español.
In his striking author-illustrator debut, Zeke Peña offers an immersive and fantastical look at his hometown of El Paso, where the sun reigns over the vast desert and shapes all that it touches.
Where the rock wall ends, the desert beyond begins.
The desert is home to unique fauna and flora that have adapted to thrive under the intense sun, making it a wild and endless playground for two bored siblings to explore. Old tires, gnarled nopal trees that beg to be climbed, enormous rocks that demonstrate how to sit still and listen. Rain brings a welcome reprieve from the heat, followed by the mud slowly drying out on their skin, cracking like clay, until it's hard to tell where the kids end and the desert begins.
Sundust is the author-illustrator debut from the acclaimed illustrator of My Papi Has a Motorcycle; it celebrates the bonds that develop between a boy and his hometown, through spare and lyrical text and dazzling desert landscapes.
This is a Spanish-langauge edition.
Donde termina la barda de piedra, empieza el más allá del desierto.
El desierto alberga flora y fauna única que se ha adaptado a vivir bajo el sol intenso, haciéndole un paisaje sin fin para el libre andar de dos hermanes curioses. Llantas viejas descartadas, nopaleras antiguas que piden ser escaladas, rocas enormes que enseñan cómo aquietarse y escuchar. La lluvia trae un bienvenido alivio del calor, seguido por el lodo que lentamente se seca en la piel, cuarteándose como barro, llegando al punto donde es difícil saber dónde terminan los niños y dónde empieza el desierto.
Polvo solar es el debut como autor-ilustrador del aclamado dibujante de Mi papi tiene una moto; celebra los lazos que se desarrollan entre una persona y su ciudad natal a través de texto preciso y lírico, y paisajes deslumbrantes del desierto.
Edición en español.
In his striking author-illustrator debut, Zeke Peña offers an immersive and fantastical look at his hometown of El Paso, where the sun reigns over the vast desert and shapes all that it touches.
Where the rock wall ends, the desert beyond begins.
The desert is home to unique fauna and flora that have adapted to thrive under the intense sun, making it a wild and endless playground for two bored siblings to explore. Old tires, gnarled nopal trees that beg to be climbed, enormous rocks that demonstrate how to sit still and listen. Rain brings a welcome reprieve from the heat, followed by the mud slowly drying out on their skin, cracking like clay, until it's hard to tell where the kids end and the desert begins.
Sundust is the author-illustrator debut from the acclaimed illustrator of My Papi Has a Motorcycle; it celebrates the bonds that develop between a boy and his hometown, through spare and lyrical text and dazzling desert landscapes.
This is a Spanish-langauge edition.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published August 5, 2025
3 people are currently reading
144 people want to read
About the author
Zeke Peña
11 books19 followersZeke Peña is a Xicano storyteller and professional doodler from El Paso, TX, the Sun City. Sundust, his author-illustrator debut is a love poem to desert culture and people. Zeke received the Ezra Jack Keats and the Pura Belpré Illustration Honors for My Papi Has a Motorcycle; and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for his illustrations in Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide. He also illustrated the NY Times Best-Selling Miles Morales Suspended: A Spider-Man Novel,. He is currently drawing more books in his tiny studio in NW Arkansas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
March 4, 2026
Boy, did I want to love this book because it is imaginative and smart. Man, was I stunned when the children in this contemporary picture book called the sun by names that are/were used to refer to the Egyptian, Hindu, and Aztec sun gods. Realizing that each occurrence of the word "sun" in the text was capitalized confirmed that the intent was meant to be current, not simply historical.
January 31, 2026
Two siblings explore the wonder of their desert home. Glorious illustrations.
I love a desert setting. As someone who hates the heat, I don’t understand why I cannot resist a story set in arid skies and red, gritty dirt. (Weirdly, I took a break from the novel I’m finishing up, Snake-eater by T. Kingfisher, to read some award winning picture books. That book is also set in the Southwest, I felt transported by both. Sometimes I feel destined to live in a little house surrounded by cacti and sagebrush, with lizards running amok)
I love a desert setting. As someone who hates the heat, I don’t understand why I cannot resist a story set in arid skies and red, gritty dirt. (Weirdly, I took a break from the novel I’m finishing up, Snake-eater by T. Kingfisher, to read some award winning picture books. That book is also set in the Southwest, I felt transported by both. Sometimes I feel destined to live in a little house surrounded by cacti and sagebrush, with lizards running amok)
February 20, 2026
Gorgeous illustrations. And that pink! I can see why this got a Caldecott Honor. The story worked well in some places and less well near the end. It's beautiful and fun.
February 7, 2026
My 2 star review is not a popular opinion as this book just received a Caldecott honor. While I can appreciate the illustrations, the story is confusing to me . This is an award for children’s books and I think it’ll be the very special child who will enjoy this one. It combines realism with fantasy and has everything from the appreciation of Mexican culture to dry desert to dried out hands to swimming to flying on a bird, all while chasing the sun.
March 17, 2026
• 2025 Caldecott Honor Book •
I felt like this book was about appreciating the environment and for encouraging imagination but I’m not sure what else is going on here. It’s a beautifully illustrated book but the writing was confusing. There were several words I didn’t know although I think I understood them through the illustrations. But I was hoping for a mini dictionary at the end which wasn’t there.
Materials used: “The illustrations for this book were created with a hybrid process, using both traditional and digital mediums including graphite pencil, colored pencil, and gouache on watercolor paper in combination with coloring, layer effects, and mastering on an iPad and a Wacom Cintiq tablet.”
Typeface used: unlisted
I felt like this book was about appreciating the environment and for encouraging imagination but I’m not sure what else is going on here. It’s a beautifully illustrated book but the writing was confusing. There were several words I didn’t know although I think I understood them through the illustrations. But I was hoping for a mini dictionary at the end which wasn’t there.
Materials used: “The illustrations for this book were created with a hybrid process, using both traditional and digital mediums including graphite pencil, colored pencil, and gouache on watercolor paper in combination with coloring, layer effects, and mastering on an iPad and a Wacom Cintiq tablet.”
Typeface used: unlisted
January 28, 2026
2026 Caldecott Honor
February 10, 2026
A brother and sister travel beyond the wall that borders their neighborhood to explore the desert.
March 4, 2026
"Where the rock wall ends, the desert beyond begins." And a brother and sister go out exploring the desert. They talk of what they find there and use their imagination to further explore . . . until their mother calls them home. Sundust is a 2026 Caldecott Honor Book.
September 28, 2025
What is this? I'm still working on that, but I am sure it's more than what the blurb implies.
It's a fable, with one obvious moral... and others subtle that each of us readers will bring to it. It's speculative fiction, grounded in a reality that's coming very soon. It's a new way to think about the unknowable, and a new way to inspire courage. It's a song (read it aloud; if I can hear it, I'm sure you can).
It's a gift for the children who will inherit this world that we have traumatized. I only hope that they grow up to help us try to heal it.
It's a fable, with one obvious moral... and others subtle that each of us readers will bring to it. It's speculative fiction, grounded in a reality that's coming very soon. It's a new way to think about the unknowable, and a new way to inspire courage. It's a song (read it aloud; if I can hear it, I'm sure you can).
It's a gift for the children who will inherit this world that we have traumatized. I only hope that they grow up to help us try to heal it.
February 19, 2026
You ever read a book and think, “There’s more here than meets the eye, but I don’t get it?” Yeah. That’s me. I loved the pictures and that this book is from a different culture than we have in my Midwest area of the United States. I like that the kids go on an adventure and use their imagination, and maybe that’s the point. Two kids go out and use their imaginations. But, I feel like I’m reaching here.
January 29, 2026
I enjoyed the story, but I found the illustrations a bit confusing.
Caldecott Honor Book 2026
Caldecott Honor Book 2026
January 26, 2026
Also gave up by the time I got to this title, which was last on the list alphabetically. 3 for story and 3.5 for illustrations. A lyrical book about two siblings exploring the desert and the sun, appreciating nature and Mexican culture.
Only looking at the illustrations, I’m a little confused on the whole point of the book because it looks like they’re just exploring the desert and then they explore/see the sun. There doesn’t seem to be much of a story and the text doesn’t help much.
The cover showcases the siblings and the desert behind them, with the pink ring background for the sun. I like the framing of the image (strong focus on the kids in the desert) and the font used for the title is fun! The back cover is the two siblings in the pink ring of the sun. Under the dust jacket of the book is a version of the sun in pink. The end papers have a sketch in graphite pencil of the desert and the city. Paper quality is good. Illustrations merge with the gutter okay – it's not the best, some of the illustrations of nature don’t seem to end naturally with the split.
Color: Love the bursts of bright pink on the page always moving the story and the action forward. Appreciate the use of colored pencil and the natural colors of white, yellow, tan, brown, various shades of desert, and different shades of green.
Line: The use of colored pencils and water color make it so the lines aren’t sharply defined in black, but are clear in outlining the siblings and muted in nature. Lines indicate motion and things like rain falling, splashing, reaching for something, and flying. The bright pink lines are effective and are fluid in their movement, curving, weaving, and squiggling along.
Shape: The sun is a bright pink circle shape. Other shapes occur in nature, and there are some natural patterns (the lines on rocks).
Texture: The use of colored pencils with water color makes the texture feel like you can touch some parts of it, like when the sun cracks their skin.
Dominance: The siblings, nature, and the pink bursts/the sun are the dominant items within the illustrations.
Text: Text is placed throughout the illustration and is lyrical in nature. Speech is shown in the speech bubble format with the text inside. There is reference to Mexican culture with some words. Nature is personified in some ways.
Composition: The illustrations match and extend what is being described in the text. The illustrator smoothly uses the bright pink lines/bursts of sun to move the story and the illustrations forward, easily leading to the turning of the next page.
Overall: I really enjoy the desert illustrations – it wasn’t all brown/tan and bland, but the artists demonstrated how beautiful and alive it can be – with the bird soaring overhead, different cacti, different flowers, the mountains, sand, the color of the sky with clouds. Definitely a love letter to the desert, to nature, and exploring and appreciating the hot desert environment and marveling at the sun. Has a bit of a whimsy exploring feel with some magic when the kids fly on an animal and see the sun up close!
Only looking at the illustrations, I’m a little confused on the whole point of the book because it looks like they’re just exploring the desert and then they explore/see the sun. There doesn’t seem to be much of a story and the text doesn’t help much.
The cover showcases the siblings and the desert behind them, with the pink ring background for the sun. I like the framing of the image (strong focus on the kids in the desert) and the font used for the title is fun! The back cover is the two siblings in the pink ring of the sun. Under the dust jacket of the book is a version of the sun in pink. The end papers have a sketch in graphite pencil of the desert and the city. Paper quality is good. Illustrations merge with the gutter okay – it's not the best, some of the illustrations of nature don’t seem to end naturally with the split.
Color: Love the bursts of bright pink on the page always moving the story and the action forward. Appreciate the use of colored pencil and the natural colors of white, yellow, tan, brown, various shades of desert, and different shades of green.
Line: The use of colored pencils and water color make it so the lines aren’t sharply defined in black, but are clear in outlining the siblings and muted in nature. Lines indicate motion and things like rain falling, splashing, reaching for something, and flying. The bright pink lines are effective and are fluid in their movement, curving, weaving, and squiggling along.
Shape: The sun is a bright pink circle shape. Other shapes occur in nature, and there are some natural patterns (the lines on rocks).
Texture: The use of colored pencils with water color makes the texture feel like you can touch some parts of it, like when the sun cracks their skin.
Dominance: The siblings, nature, and the pink bursts/the sun are the dominant items within the illustrations.
Text: Text is placed throughout the illustration and is lyrical in nature. Speech is shown in the speech bubble format with the text inside. There is reference to Mexican culture with some words. Nature is personified in some ways.
Composition: The illustrations match and extend what is being described in the text. The illustrator smoothly uses the bright pink lines/bursts of sun to move the story and the illustrations forward, easily leading to the turning of the next page.
Overall: I really enjoy the desert illustrations – it wasn’t all brown/tan and bland, but the artists demonstrated how beautiful and alive it can be – with the bird soaring overhead, different cacti, different flowers, the mountains, sand, the color of the sky with clouds. Definitely a love letter to the desert, to nature, and exploring and appreciating the hot desert environment and marveling at the sun. Has a bit of a whimsy exploring feel with some magic when the kids fly on an animal and see the sun up close!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 3, 2026
Sundust by Zeke Peña is the one 2026 Caldecott Honor book I hadn’t read before the ALA Youth Media Awards last week. I immediately requested it through my library and since I’ve had it in my hands I’ve read it again - and again - and again. I ❤️ picture books! And there’s so much I love about the visual storytelling in Sundust. Here are a few things:
The story actually begins on the illustrated title pages and because you are not turning mostly blank pages with text to get to the story you’re literally off and running with two children. All you see are their feet and two speech bubbles…
“We can’t go out there.”
“Stop worrying. Don’t you want to see what it is?”
… and a hot pink streak come through the D in SUNDUST and land with a Plunk! This is one of the best beginnings ever!
You immediately sense the color palette - that sun bleached feeling of the Southwest desert where the story takes place. And then there’s another color - the fluorescent pink - that Peña uses specifically for the sundust - which is the streak which becomes a trail the brother and sister follow and sometimes it splatters. The sundust makes the magic in the desert literally pop off the pages.
The desert isn't just a backdrop; it is characterized through the children's eyes and it’s the illustrations that show this. A gnarled nopal tree is illustrated to look like their mother—"tough and prickly” on the outside, but life-sustaining and essential. Large rocks are shown as teachers of "how to sit still and listen".
The children follow the sundust trail which ends at a calibri who unexpectedly gives them a ride. This is when the story takes off - literally - and the illustrations tell what a fantastical adventure the two are having - in the desert, becoming the desert, and in their imagination.
I have mixed feelings about returning this book today! I love it so much I want to keep it, but I do want other people to see it!
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
The story actually begins on the illustrated title pages and because you are not turning mostly blank pages with text to get to the story you’re literally off and running with two children. All you see are their feet and two speech bubbles…
“We can’t go out there.”
“Stop worrying. Don’t you want to see what it is?”
… and a hot pink streak come through the D in SUNDUST and land with a Plunk! This is one of the best beginnings ever!
You immediately sense the color palette - that sun bleached feeling of the Southwest desert where the story takes place. And then there’s another color - the fluorescent pink - that Peña uses specifically for the sundust - which is the streak which becomes a trail the brother and sister follow and sometimes it splatters. The sundust makes the magic in the desert literally pop off the pages.
The desert isn't just a backdrop; it is characterized through the children's eyes and it’s the illustrations that show this. A gnarled nopal tree is illustrated to look like their mother—"tough and prickly” on the outside, but life-sustaining and essential. Large rocks are shown as teachers of "how to sit still and listen".
The children follow the sundust trail which ends at a calibri who unexpectedly gives them a ride. This is when the story takes off - literally - and the illustrations tell what a fantastical adventure the two are having - in the desert, becoming the desert, and in their imagination.
I have mixed feelings about returning this book today! I love it so much I want to keep it, but I do want other people to see it!
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
February 1, 2026
When teachers ask for fantasy in picture books, this is my new pick! Zeke Pena takes us on a journey around the desert and into space as far as the sun as two Latino siblings explore their world and discuss the things that the sun and its heat and its power offer to the humans, the earth, and the animals that live in the desert. It is absolutely stunning to observe the illustrations that you feel a part of, at least I did. It took me a second read to really own the fantastical journey into the universe, but I really do love it! I have no idea how my students will react to this one, but I will own up to them that this is the one that won an ALA Caldecott Honor that I missed completely. It happened last year, also, and I love telling them that it is really hard to prepare a Mock Caldecott due to the quantity of books printed each year. Kudos to this year's Caldecott Committee for finding this gem and raising it up for us all to enjoy!
April 5, 2026
Two adventurous siblings set off to explore the desert just beyond their neighborhood and find a lot more than just abandoned vehicles, gnarly nopal trees, empty turtle shells, and ancient rocks. Turns out that their imaginations can take them to some fantastic places and give them special powers, which are vividly depicted in the psychedelic illustrations, especially the magical neon pink sundust. However, the jump cuts among alternative realities are a bit too disorienting.
As other reviewers have noted, some vocabulary is a trifle too sophisticated for inexperienced readers. A glossary would have been helpful to define some of the unusual word choices and obscure references. An introduction to the Chihuahuan Desert, the largest and most biodiverse desert in North America, would have been a welcome addition as well.
Though interesting, the book is a dubious contender for the 2026 Caldecott Honor Award.
As other reviewers have noted, some vocabulary is a trifle too sophisticated for inexperienced readers. A glossary would have been helpful to define some of the unusual word choices and obscure references. An introduction to the Chihuahuan Desert, the largest and most biodiverse desert in North America, would have been a welcome addition as well.
Though interesting, the book is a dubious contender for the 2026 Caldecott Honor Award.
August 22, 2025
I don't think I have every read a book like this one...a science fiction/fantasy picture book.
When two brown-skinned children hop over the stone fence and leave the safety of their border town, they venture out into the desert to find the asteroid that has fallen from the sky. The answer they receive to their question is a deluge of life-saving water that leaves them transformed, s they leave stardust on all they touch.
Peña's book is out of this world! I found myself reading it several times to make sense of what I had read. The illustrations are so key for this book. The eye-popping pink is everwhere and jumps out at the reader. My question: Is sundust anything like stardust?
This quirky story is Recommended for grades K-3.
When two brown-skinned children hop over the stone fence and leave the safety of their border town, they venture out into the desert to find the asteroid that has fallen from the sky. The answer they receive to their question is a deluge of life-saving water that leaves them transformed, s they leave stardust on all they touch.
Peña's book is out of this world! I found myself reading it several times to make sense of what I had read. The illustrations are so key for this book. The eye-popping pink is everwhere and jumps out at the reader. My question: Is sundust anything like stardust?
This quirky story is Recommended for grades K-3.
October 21, 2025
This unusual book filled with similes and metaphors takes the reader on a magical journey through the desert and beyond the clouds, through space and time and back to reality. Bright pink, (the sundust) adorns the otherwise muted illustrations. The lyrical text calms the reader, yet leaves one thinking, pondering and questioning. It is a book to be shared and discussed. Each reader will takes it own message away from this beautiful book. Young readers will likely scratch their heads wondering what the book is actually about. Teachers can use this book for higher level thinking as well as teaching similes and metaphors.
Recommended ages for this book...independent readers grades 2-4, but all ages will gleam meaning from this lovely book. Recommended by SEPA book reviewers
Recommended ages for this book...independent readers grades 2-4, but all ages will gleam meaning from this lovely book. Recommended by SEPA book reviewers
February 10, 2026
I also grew up in El Paso, TX. El Paso is a very large city with numerous neighborhoods. So, the neighborhood that I grew up in was not very similar to the one that the author depicts here in his book. My backyard was bang up against someone else's backyard, not the desert. And although we had a tree in our backyard, and I climbed it, it was definitely not a nopal tree (prickly pear, full of thorns!) The second house we lived in was also back-to-back with another property. We had cherry trees, peach trees, and pecan trees, but no nopal trees. There is a lot of diversity in the flora and fauna of El Paso, even though it is located in the Chihuahuan desert.
February 19, 2026
2/19/26: I read this because it was a 2026 Caldecott Honor Book and I'm trying to keep up with the prize. This might be the last year I do because the committee (through time) and I do not have the same taste in illustrations. Obviously, this is on me not the committee. I liked the illustrations, especially all the use of pink throughout, I just didn't think it stood out among all the books from last year. Just my opinion. I'll be reading the other honor books (and winner) from this year, but after that I'm done with this challenge for myself. I would recommend though, the story with the pictures is really very good.
May 1, 2026
2026 Caldecott Honor winner. I have read this multiple times and finally settled on the fact that I found this book weird. We start out with what looks like a .meteor hitting the earth, and a brother and sister deciding to climb over their wall to head into the desert. It goes from siblings exploring the nature of the desert to a surreal shift where the kids become tiny and climb a prickly pear, are the same size as a butterfly, ride the back of a humming bird, etc. They never seem to find the meteor, but they do go to the sun and end up with.the "Sun's power in [their] hands." Just didn't care for the progression of this story.
December 13, 2025
4.5 stars-- the few spreads in the middle (rain > River Spirit > skin drying out) seem to not fit together as well as the other exploring pages, but overall I liked this book. Great illustrations and the first picture book in awhile that forced me to go back and reread it.
Im going to throw some shade at people who said "I dont get it, maybe it i read it too fast" -- I think its okay to demonstrate to kids rereading, reading slowly, going back, looking up words, etc. I think that ultimately makes this book more satisfying for older kids or classroom settings.
Im going to throw some shade at people who said "I dont get it, maybe it i read it too fast" -- I think its okay to demonstrate to kids rereading, reading slowly, going back, looking up words, etc. I think that ultimately makes this book more satisfying for older kids or classroom settings.
December 19, 2025
Two latino siblings live in a border town in the southwestern desert and they go exploring beyond the town wall into the endless desert and heat.
Both a love letter to the desert biome and an exploration of interplay between the elements and the people who live in it, I ended up really liking this picture book. It has an odd sort of charm. It’s just strange enough that I wouldn’t use it for teaching about the desert, but might find a place when discussing poetry, even though it’s not quite a poem either.
Both a love letter to the desert biome and an exploration of interplay between the elements and the people who live in it, I ended up really liking this picture book. It has an odd sort of charm. It’s just strange enough that I wouldn’t use it for teaching about the desert, but might find a place when discussing poetry, even though it’s not quite a poem either.
February 7, 2026
I loved this picture book about two children who go exploring outside of their neighborhood and discover an incredible world of insects, birds and other desert creatures. The illustrations are full of movement and energy. The colors explode on the page as do the colors of the Southwest! As with many picture books, this book has a much deeper story to tell.
This book is a 2026 Caldecott Honor Book. Just a reminder to reviewers, the Caldecott Medal is given for the illustrations. In this book, Mr. Pena is the author and illustrator.
This book is a 2026 Caldecott Honor Book. Just a reminder to reviewers, the Caldecott Medal is given for the illustrations. In this book, Mr. Pena is the author and illustrator.
December 12, 2025
This gorgeous title is available in English and Spanish versions. I read the Spanish version, but I still had to do lots of translation due to the rich language - I had not yet been exposed to many of these beautiful words!
Two siblings enjoy the hot desert and a brief rainstorm before Mama whistles for them to come home.
A beautiful book for lessons about the desert, imagination, and the wonder of nature.
Two siblings enjoy the hot desert and a brief rainstorm before Mama whistles for them to come home.
A beautiful book for lessons about the desert, imagination, and the wonder of nature.
December 19, 2025
It's all there, on the other side of the wall. At the end of the road where two siblings share an adventure (On the other side of the wall) when they hop over the wall, there is the desert with all the lovely flora and fauna grow and after they enter the desert suddenly a sundust layers over the desert and turns everything a glowing beautiful bright pink. A delightful story of just what kids do: play makebelieve when they "cross over" to their areas of neighborhood playground.
February 9, 2026
With a lyrical text and beautiful mixed media art, we tag along on the fantasy adventure of two siblings as they follow sundust into the desert beyond their neighborhood. Sundust is a mix of culture, science, and imagination. I read this book four times, once aloud, and loved following the glimpses of sundust depicted in bright pinks and purples to contrast with the desert browns and greens. This Caldecott Honor book offers lots to discover, figure out, and discuss.
September 5, 2025
LOVED the illustration. Honestly that's the main reason this has 5 stars. The story is a poem about the dessert and living there, and exploring what it offers. There are magical realism aspects to the story where the kids fly and get magic pink dust on them. But also nature elements about the plants and animals you find in desserts. Reads like a love story to the dessert and nature.
September 7, 2025
I really liked this one. The illustrations are the strength, but the otherworldly elements - this continuation between past and present and future and here and space -- were really compelling. The contrast between the desert colors and the hot pink and purple were sooo pretty. This is a caldecott contender for me.
January 31, 2026
Siblings who live on the edge of the desert spend a day exploring.
Imaginative and magical, I loved the relationship these children have with the plants, animals, and even the rocks of the desert. I loved where Peña talked about how the rocks just listen - a wonderful lesson for children - it's good to be calm and quiet and peaceful.
Imaginative and magical, I loved the relationship these children have with the plants, animals, and even the rocks of the desert. I loved where Peña talked about how the rocks just listen - a wonderful lesson for children - it's good to be calm and quiet and peaceful.
February 11, 2026
Caldecott honor. Focusing on the illustration style: mainly soft, muted colors and edges, no black lines, fluorescent pink worked in on every page but building up and increasing in amount incorporated. Main characters have exaggerated proportions, very linear and geometric, made of basic shapes (the boys arms are rectangles with 4 j shapes for fingers)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews