Too Many Tamales

 

Book: Too Many Tamales 

Author: Gary Soto

Illustrator: Ed Martinez 

Genre: Realistic Fiction, Humor 

Major Awards: None 

Age Group: K-3

Summary: 

Maria felt all grown up when she helped her mother make tamales for Christmas. She was kneading the masa and wearing her mothers apron, lipstick and perfume but she still really wanted to wear her mothers beautiful diamond ring. When her mother leaves, she puts on the ring, proceeds to make the tamales and forgets about it till hours later when she sees that the ring is missing. She gets her cousins to help her eat all the tamales to find out which one had the ring. When they finish, they still hadn't found the ring and they think that one of her cousins ended up eating it! Confronting her mother, she learns that her mother had the ring all along and her whole family gets together to make another batch of tamales. 

Evaluation and Comments: 

Too Many Tamales is a wonderful story that depicts a Hispanic family during Christmas time. I grew up making tamales with my mother as well so this story is something that I can personally relate to, and even though I have never eaten all the tamales, it's message is something that really resonates with me. 

This is a great story to read to younger kids, especially those with Hispanic background, because it's something that we really don't see often; stories depicting our culture. The second I saw tamales in the title, I got so excited because it's my favorite food and it's something that I have never seen a book talk about. It makes you feel included and for those who are not Hispanic, you still learn the importance of what Tamales signifies; a time of the year where family comes together to cook a meal together. 

Whether it's in the holiday season or you're learning about different cultures in the classroom, this is an awesome book to bring out to both inform students and make them feel included and seen.  

In conclusion, Too Many Tamales has my seal of approval! 🥇😄