My Vida Loca

Sofía Martínez

by Jacqueline Jules, Kim Smith (Illustrations)

Even the most basic chores can be fun when Sofia is involved! From washing a car to cooking with grandma, this smart and funny 7-year-old knows how to make every moment count. Follow Sofia through three every day adventures in this early chapter eBook and find out why Sofia has such a crazy life!

Genres: Childrens, Middle Grade, Family, Spanish Literature, Picture Books, Chapter Books

74 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2016

About the author

I am a children's author, teacher, librarian, and poet. My books include the Zapato Power series, the Sofia Martinez series, Pluto is Peeved, Unite or Die: How Thirteen States Became a Nation, Duck for Turkey Day, Never Say a Mean Word Again, and Feathers for Peacock. Please visit me at http://www.jacquelinejules.com

Reviews

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute early chapter book for girls. Sofia is the main character and she tends to get herself into trouble, fortunately nothing major. There are three separate stories in this book. In the first she receives a karaoke type machine for Christmas from her grandmother. Her family does not appreciate her loud repetitious singing and after being sent to her cousin's and her grandmother's houses she ends up on the street singing for the dogs. In the second story she tries to help her grandmother make a special dish. She ends up putting salt in instead of sugar and ruins the recipe. When she realizes what happens, her mother and her make a new one and plan to switch it with the one that she and her grandmother made. Her grandmother realizes the mistake as well and has already made a new dish. The third story is about doing chores. Sofia does not want to clean in the house so her father lets her wash the car instead. Sofia and her cousin Hector start fooling around and break the mirror on the car and flood her mother's garden. With the help of her sisters she fixes the garden and her father shows her that the mirror is not broken, just folded back. The great thing about all these stories is that Sofia always admits what she has done and works with her family to fix the problem. The family is very involved with one another and very loving. There are a variety of Spanish words used in the book and there is a glossary at the back explaining the vocabulary. A great book for school and public libraries.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Shark · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I really liked it. Really good. I liked it, I liked it, I liked it. Levi might like it. Ezekiel maybe. I liked the pictures, and I liked that they were colors, and I liked the characters." ~review by a preschooler

"Good. [thumbs up]" ~review by another preschooler

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a second collection of Sofia Martinez stories, following My Family Adventure. The three stories in this collection are also being published as individual volumes. In "Singing Superstar," Sofia receives a singing machine as a Christmas gift and immediately begins to seek an audience for her loud, ear-piercing singing, but finds that most of her family is reluctant to listen. In "The Secret Recipe," Sofia tries to help her grandmother bake a special treat, but she ends up mistaking salt for sugar and having to find a way to replace the ruined dessert. Finally, in "The Marigold Mess," Sofia attempts to wash the car, but winds up flooding her mother's marigolds instead.

Just like the first set of Sofia Martinez stories, this one is brightly colored and filled with style and sass, as well as Spanish phrases. The expressive illustrations really capture Sofia's vibrant personality, and they also help the reader keep track of her many relatives. Though there is some humor in the text, the illustrations - especially of Sofia's exuberant singing performances - bring the true laughs. This collection is also a nice tribute to the warm relationship kids can have with their grandparents, as Sofia's grandma is the most understanding of all of the adults.

These upbeat stories about a spunky young girl are sure to have wide appeal. Kids will enjoy the format and characterization, while parents will appreciate the character-building lessons hidden in each episode. Recommend this series to fans of Katie Woo and Ling and Ting.

[Jozef Syndicate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jozef Syndicate's 8-year-old reviewer gives My Vida Loca a solid 4-star rating. She found "My Vida Loca" to be a funny collection of three stories that tell the adventures of Sofia who is active and behaves just like your crazy second-grade best friend. The best parts of the book is when Sofia drowns her mother's flower garden and decides to spread soil over it. When her sisters come to help Sofia but get dirty instead, Sofia sprays them with water to try and clean them, but what a mess! Another favorite part is when Sofia is in church and wants to know Abuela's secret ingredient for arroz con leche after she made a big mistake in the kitchen.

"My Vida Loca" interjects Spanish words at the perfect time for young readers to understand and enjoy. (The glossary in the back of the book is a bonus.) Watching this reviewer laugh out loud and practice new Spanish words is an added treat. This is a great book for independent readers and fun for parents/teachers reading to younger groups.



*This is a review of an eARC received through NetGalley.

[Dena McMurdie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Vida Loca is such a cute book for growing readers. I read this with my two girls, ages eight and six. My six year old especially loved it. She liked the full color pictures, the simple text, and the fun stories. My eight year old liked the Spanish words she learned and got a good laugh at the humor in the stories.

My Vida Loca is a compilation of three short stories about Sophia and her family. Each story has a small number of chapters in it to break things up. It's a fun, cute, and easy to read multicultural book for kids in grades K-2.

This is a lovely addition to the growing collection of diverse books for children. The main character is Hispanic and uses a lot of Spanish words throughout the book. My Vida Loca is perfect for kids learning to read and starting to merge into chapter books.

Content: clean

Source: I was loaned a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

My blog: Batch of Books

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

These stories would be perfect for first or second grade early readers. This volume contains 3 different stories, each one with multiple chapters. They’re the perfect length for this age; a slight step up from picture books, but not approaching the length of chapter books written for older kids.

And the stories are fun to read, watching the mischief that Sofia gets herself into.

Considering that there are both English and Spanish words, it’s great that there’s a glossary in the back. (Though many words might be able to be figured out with context clues.)

Overall, recommended. We need to see more diversity in our kids books (Sofia is Hispanic). Maybe I should rephrase that: we need to see our kids books more reflecting the real world – because the real world is diverse.

Thanks to NetGalley, Capstone, and Picture Window Books for a copy in return for an honest review.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm crazy about Sofia Martinez. These books are the perfect blend of Hispanic culture with the broad American culture. The first girl who checked out one of my Sofia books from my primary school library brought it back to me a little while after she had a chance to look at it more closely. "It's in Spanish," she told me sadly. "No," I told her, "it's mostly in English, with a few Spanish words." I showed her the glossary of Spanish words and their meanings and she brightened. "I know a lot of these words anyway," she told me happily. She returned it a few days later and asked for another Sofia. The reading level is ideal for our early chapter book readers in first and second grade.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, bright illustrations accompany this chapter book that is best for children ages 5 to 7. Seven year old Sopfia has adventures that are chronicled in three stories in the book as she becomes a singing superstar with a toy microphone, helps her abuela cook arroz con leche and has some trouble while washing the family's car. There are some Spanish words and phrases in the book and a Spanish glossary is included at the end. I think that children will enjoy this book. I received this book free to review from Netgalley.

[Serenity · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received a copy of this book as an eARC from the publisher through NetGalley*

This fun and lighthearted beginning chapter book will be a big hit with my younger students. Readers who do not speak Spanish may struggle a bit trying to determine the Spanish phrases sprinkled throughout, but the glossary is very clearly and neatly laid out so should be helpful.

[Tabatha]

This is one of my favorite new series. I really enjoy the dual-language element. This one is really fun and great for readers not yet ready for chapter books.

[Ameryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sonia loved it! Thank you Aunt Tami, Uncle Chad, Nicholas, and Nina!

[AMY · Rating 4 out of 5]

90 pages. Beginner chapter book. In section 1, Sofia receives a superstar sing box for Christmas from her abuela. She drives everyone crazy with her singing until she finds the right audience. In section 2 - Sofia helps her abuela cook Arroz con leche and doesn't follow the instructions regarding the sugar container. She has to make the recipe right before her grandmother's dish lands at the church dinner. In section 3, Sofia tries to water her mom's flowers and creates one disaster after another. These are fun, realistic stories with color illustrations and Spanish words throughout. A dictionary is available at the end to help explain/translate the Spanish words. Highly recommended for grades 2-4.

[Libraryworker14gmail.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are charming stories of the lovable seven year old character, Sofia Martinez. Her adventures are entertaining, plus the illustrations are appealing that complement the text. I love how her abuela and parents nurture and comfort her during her mishaps. I will definitely recommend this series for younger school age children.

[KaitandMaddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked these slice of life stories. The Spanish words are indicated by text colour, which is an interesting idea. The first story particularly cracked me up, because Kait and Maddie both talked about how they too liked to sing and use the coffee table as a stage, without ever really taking in that the rest of the family thinks she’s a terrible singer.

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a perfect book for young girls beginning to transition to chapter books. Sofia is a spunky 7 year old who has fun adventures with her large family. There are three separate stories in his book. Each story is three chapters and there is a Spanish/English glossary.

[Arabella]

Another great book for students as well as Spanish speakers. Surprisingly the stories are not too predictable, and the main character is a well-intentioned girl who makes mistakes, like we all do. Very relatable for kids, and a good way to introduce common Spanish words.

[Andréa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

[Rebecca Reid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun early chapter book! I love books that mix Spanish and English, and this provides a fun new perspective and a loveable character. I look forward to finding more in the series.

[Kimberly Cruz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the book because it was really interesting and it reminded me of my two sisters .

[T.J. Burns]

I received a copy of this book from Capstone via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Isis Ray-sisco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute kid's book =D I can see my daughter liking it when she is old enough to read it.

[Kelly Carey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this book because it was simply a compilation of 3 previously published shorter stories: The Marigold Mess, The Secret Recipe, and the Singing Superstar.

[Saba N Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three fun stories follow this adorable and spunky young girl as she goes about her day to day adventures. Sure to delight young readers.

[Jessica S · Rating 3 out of 5]

A beginning chapter book, I read this book aloud to my 3 year old. There were 3 main stories, each with a couple short chapters, which made it easy to read "one story" in a short amount of time before bed. The main character is realistic and the story lines are humorous.