Carmela Full of Wishes
A Review by Amanda Kendall
Bibliography:
de la Peña, Matt. 2018. Carmela Full of Wishes. Ill. by Christian Robinson. New York: G.P. Putnan's Sons. 9780399549045
Plot Summary:
Carmela starts her birthday with candles on her pancakes and the knowledge that she is finally old enough to go with her big brother. The two walk through their thriving community together until they arrive at the local laundromat. There, Carmela finds a lone dandelion puff on the sidewalk. She picks the dandelion and carries it through her community. From a vending machine that has anything you could desire to a fancy bed for her mother and proper paperwork for her father, Carmela imagines all the wishes she would like to make but is unable to decide how to best use her one dandelion. When Carmela crashes on her scooter, drops the dandelion, and loses her wish that her brother comes to her rescue. He takes her to the beach with a field of dandelion puffs, helping her hold on to hope, and see "the sky is full of wishes" (de la Peña 2018).
Critical Analysis:
Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson prove to be master storytellers with each collaboration. Carmela Full of Wishes is no exception. Peña's text is elegant and precise. His word choice turns each page into a celebration for the senses. His words trigger the sights, sounds, and smells of Carmela's neighborhood for the reader. Her bracelets are "jingling and jangling" (de la Peña 2018), the air smells of "marigolds and overturned earth and fresh manure" (de la Peña 2018), carts are rattling, and brothers are giving annoyed looks. All of these realistic details are woven into the story repetitiously, creating a beautiful narrative that connects each page to the last. As Carmela and her brother journey through town, Peña repeats the sounds of Carmela's bracelets jingling and the word imagining as she thinks of all her wishing possibilities. Peña also uses repetition throughout the text to create continuity within the story. His dialogue follows this recipe for success and captures a true sibling relationship of both annoyance and support from beginning to end. All in all, Peña's creative choices make Carmela Full of Wishes a joy to read aloud.
Robinson's illustrations compliment and enhance the text every step of the way. His signature collage and paint illustrations are filled with vibrant colors and well used white space. Some pages exude happiness with bold, bright backgrounds while other pages are left more sparse allowing the illustrations to match the feelings of Carmela throughout the story. The characters authentically represent the Hispanic community in the story and include people of all ages and even an expectant mother. They reflect real life and a real community. Cultural markers of the Latin community can be found in many of the backgrounds of the illustrations. For example a flower sign reads "Rosas Flores" and the corn food cart is located right outside the panadería. One of the most eye catching cultural markers is the illustrations of Carmela's wishes. Each wish is showcased in the style of a papel picado, a traditional style of Mexican folk art that involves cutting paper to create intricate designs. Robinson expertly illustrates Carmela's wish coming true within the paper flags design filling the page with unmistakable and well designed cultural reference.
Peña and Robinson's collaboration shows an authentic experience in the Latinx community. Skillfully executed, the picture book has many layers to be explored and understood. Subtly including themes of labor and immigration, some readers may miss these cultural markers while others may feel seen for the first time, a powerful mirror for these children. For others, it opens a window to the authentic experiences of many and provides an opportunity for important conversations. The book opens with Carmela scooting past the workers in field and the green houses. She mentions walking past the home improvement store where her dad used to wait for work. Her wish for her mother is to sleep in one of "fancy hotel beds" she made. Each one of these examples is Peña's quite way of showcasing the many labor experiences of his community. The theme of immigration is gently touched upon when Carmela imagines her dad "getting his papers fixed so he could finally he home" (de la Peña 2018). The final scene at the beach with the sky filled with dandelion seeds ends the story on a positive and hopeful note. There are always more wishes. There is a "sky full of wishes" (de la Peña 2018). You don't have to pick just one.
Review Excerpts & Awards:
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY (July 30, 2018) "The award-winning team behind Last Stop on Market Street portrays Carmela's Spanish-speaking community as a vibrant place of possibility, and Robinson's acrylic-and-cutout spreads introduce readers to street vendors, workers in the fields, and sweeping views of the sea. Sensitively conceived and exuberantly executed, Carmela's story shines."
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY (July 30, 2018) "The award-winning team behind Last Stop on Market Street portrays Carmela's Spanish-speaking community as a vibrant place of possibility, and Robinson's acrylic-and-cutout spreads introduce readers to street vendors, workers in the fields, and sweeping views of the sea. Sensitively conceived and exuberantly executed, Carmela's story shines."
KIRKUS REVIEWS (September 1, 2018) "This second de la Peña–Robinson collaboration after Last Stop on Market
Street is no less powerful and beautiful. It touches on immigration,
class, and loss without belaboring each. And it’s full of rich details,
sharp and restrained writing, and acrylic paintings that look textured
enough to rise off the page. In one brilliant sequence, Mexican papel
picado depicts what Carmela imagines, ending with “her dad getting his
papers fixed so he could finally be home” and a cutout of a kneeling
father embracing his daughter. It’s a bracing page, the best in the
book, and just as sublime as the text. It’s another near-perfect slice
of life from a duo that has found a way to spotlight underrepresented
children without forgetting that they are children first."
- A Publishers Weekly Most Anticipated Children’s Book – Fall 2018
- A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2018
- A Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of 2018
- A Boston Globe Best Children’s Book of 2018
Curricular Connections:
- Carmela thinks hard about her wish. She imagines things like a vending machine that has whatever she wants but also imagines wishes that would improve the lives of the people around her. Like Carmela, have students hold on to hope and make a list of wishes they would like to see come true.
- Create a dandelion puff painting using white tempra paint and empty toilet paper rolls. Click here for step by step directions on using toilet paper rolls to create the dandelions.
- Carmela's birthday is special because of the experience she shares with her brother. Use Carmela Full of Wishes as a mentor text to spark ideas in writing. Have students write about a special memory with a loved one.
- Create your own papel picado project. Step by step directions can be found here.
