Sofi Paints Her Dreams /Sofi pinta sus sueños

by Raquel M. Ortiz, Roberta Collier Morales (Illustrations)

Young Sofi enters a New York City community garden and finds a half-painted mural. It’s full of big, leafy plants in blue and yellow, and a vibrant emerald green color appears where the two colors meet. As Sofi runs her fingers over the image, she is suddenly transported to a beautiful place with plants just like the ones on the wall! Sofi finds herself in the Dominican Republic, where she meets a young boy named Juan Luis. He is writing a song, but he’s stuck on the lyrics and needs her help. After they finish the song, the pair flies over the river that separates San Pedro de Macoris from Haiti. There, Juan Luis introduces her to his friend, Güerlande, a young metal artist. She also needs Sofi’s help. Can she make just the right shade of purple to paint Güerlande’s huge mermaid sculpture? This bilingual picture book about an imaginative girl and an enchanted mural is an engaging exploration of the cultural traditions of the Caribbean. The sequel to Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural / Sofi y el mágico mural musical , this story introduces young readers to the art and music of the gorgeous island of Hispaniola. Kids will be encouraged to explore their own artistic talents after reading about internationally acclaimed Dominican musician, Juan Luis Guerra, and Haitian artist, Güerlande Balan.

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Fiction, Art

32 pages, Hardcover

Published May 31, 2019

About the author

Dr. Raquel M. Ortiz is an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker, a social anthropologist, educator, storyteller, playwright, performer, poet, composer, editor, illustrator, and author of children's books and songs.

In 2025, Dr. Ortiz children's book, When Julia Danced Bomba / Cuando Julia bailaba bomba inspired the award winning short film, Julia's Dance: A Bomba Flamenco Bedtime Tale by TallyTwo Pictures. In 2022, Dr. Ortiz, a Cleveland Foundation Artist Fellow, released an album of Afro-Puerto Rican bomba songs for children, Que vengan los niños, created in collaboration with Grammy-nominated Latin Jazz legend, composer, and educator, William Cepeda. The songs in the Que vengan los niños are sung in Spanish, English, and some are bilingual.

Dr. Ortiz’s bilingual stories about Afro-Caribbean and Latinx culture invite children and adults to join in on adventures, featuring children as the protagonists so that they see and celebrate their creativity and valor. She has published Vicki and a Summer of Change! / ¡Vicki y un verano de cambio! (2020) via Red Sugarcane Press). Via Arte Publico Press, Dr. Ortiz has published four titles: Sofi Paints her Dreams / Sofi pinta sus sueños (2019), Broken Butterfly Wings / Alas de mariposa rotas (2021), When Julia Danced Bomba / Cuando Julia bailaba bomba (2019), and Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural / Sofi y el magico mural musical (2015). Dr. Ortiz also published Planting Flags on Division Street / Plantando banderas en la calle Division (2015) via Bambazo De Colores.

Dr. Ortiz’s bilingual multimedia storytelling using music, puppetry, and video led to a collaboration with Cleveland Public Library’s Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural musical performance in 2018 and the Cleveland Play House play, !A las nubes! (2022) inspired by Broken Butterfly Wings/Alas de mariposa rotas. Dr. Ortiz’s script and a song for Cucarachita Martina’s Musical Adventure, screened at the Tribeca Film Festival and earned her a 2021 Emmy nomination.

Dr. Ortiz has a PhD in cultural anthropology from the University of Salamanca and a Masters in Puerto Rican studies from the Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Puerto Rico y el Caribe. She is currently working on a novel for middle schoolers that explores folktales and Taíno mythology.

Reviews

[Cara Byrne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part of the children's book collection at the Cleveland Children's Museum (August 2021).

[thalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

So cute! Learned some Spanish and some cool art history