Adela's Mariachi Band

I've seen Mariachi bands before but never really thought about them. This was so interesting! Mariachi bands usually consist of certain instruments, and everyone has a part. Some Mariachi bands have dancers, while others don't.
In this cute picture book, Adela wants to be part of the band but she doesn't have great skills yet. In the end, she figures out how she can still play an important part while she grows into her talents.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

A very cute story about Adela's favorite thing in the world: her family's mariachi band.

A beautiful mix of music, dance, and family, an enjoyable read, especially for young people looking forward to finding a space for themselves in the future.

Thank you #NetGalley and #Charlesbridge for the ARC!

This book would be great for music class or teaching about Mexican culture. It was fun, rhythmic, colorful, and had a good message to keep trying.

This was a cute book! I really like the use of onomatopoeia. I also like how this book was written to help kids learn about different cultures.

Adela's Mariachi Band
by Denise Vega Erika Medina
A beautiful story of family pride, and growing up trying to find your place in it. The band is the entire lively hood and the youngest just wants in on the fun. She finds what she can do to add to the fun.

Colorful, empowering, and a lovely story that will be a hit at family storytimes. I would love to see versions of this in Spanish as well to incorporate into bilingual storytimes.

This is a cute, energetic picture book about a young girl who wants to be part of her family's mariachi band. The text is snappy and fun, especially with the descriptions of how different musical instruments sound, and the illustrations are funny and expressive. This is a great cultural heritage story, and I also enjoyed the author's note at the end.

This was a cute book with colourful illustrations. My preschooler enjoyed learning about new musical instruments and a new culture. The story was easy for her to follow, she was engaged and it inspired her curiosity. She enjoyed asking questions about the illustrations.

I loved this cute, quick, brightly colored book. This one will be perfect for little hands, and it’s a good way to teach children about different cultures. What a fun book!

This was a really cute book! Great way to introduce our culture to our children! I read this book with my son and we discussed Mariachis and I even shared some songs that I liked. Even the memory of my grandmother hiring a mariachi for my quinceanera and her dedicating a song to me. Highly recommend this book!

Loved this story and the beautiful pictures. It’s a story about realizing your uniqueness and finding your place. Adela is a sweet, happy little girl who desperately wants to be in her family’s mariachi band. She tries several instruments and dancing. One of my favorite parts of the story is, she never envies her family, she just needs to find her special spot. I received a free advance review copy, and I am voluntarily leaving this review. I always love learning new things about different cultures.

If you love mariachi and family member who play trompeta, vihuela, and dance, then this is a perfect book for you. Adela wants to be part of the mariachi band but she does not know how. Find out how she discovered what her talents are. This is fun book, and the illustrations are amazing. It makes one long for family celebrations and enjoy music all around!

What a beautiful story that captures the Hispanic/Mexican culture wonderfully. A great book to introduce such a unique culture to your little one. The picture book was also so detailed and its colors helped bring the story to life! A story for every little one to enjoy!

This is a wonderful children's book! I am a first grade teacher and I love bringing new books into my classroom library to read aloud to my students. They really enjoyed this one. I love how there is a lesson for all students to relate to, while the story still potentially introduces students to things they may not have known about. The illustrations are beautifully done and add to the story. I enjoy when books include words in other languages. The author's note is a great addition to this book as well.

Adela loves her family band but isn't part of it because she is too little. She wants to be part of it NOW but everything takes too long to learn/grow. The end of the book gives information and details of mariachi and performances.

A sweet story about feeling left out. A story about wanting to belong but struggling to find a way that feels right.

Everyone in Adela’s family belongs to their mariachi band. Some play instruments. Some dance. Others sing. Adela loves when her father and uncles play while her mom and aunts dance, bringing big smiles to the faces of the audience. Adela loves everything about her family’s mariachi band, everything but the fact that she’s not part of it.

Mariachi music has a special place in my heart, courtesy of the many mornings of listening to my mom, singing Cuco Sanchez while cooking breakfast, and the many summer picnics by the river with my grandmother’s tiny transistor radio broadcasting Pedro Infante and Jorge Negrete. So, when I saw the cover of this book, I had to check it out.

The story is fun and reading it out loud only makes it better (a must have for any good picture book), by providing plenty of opportunities for the child to interact and participate. Adela and her troubles are easy to relate to, particularly for children with older siblings—it’s always easy to feel left out when an older brother or sister does things one can’t do yet.

And, of course, there’s also the introduction to what mariachi music is and who are the people who play it, which will be a nostalgic moment for some—like me—and interesting new knowledge for others.

The illustrations were the only thing I wasn’t super enthusiastic about . They’re beautiful but they feel a bit flat and somehow empty. Mariachis are known for the intricacy of their suits and the embroidery in their hats, and most of those details are missing from the illustrations in this book. Same about Adela’s dress and those of the traditional dancers. I understand this is a children’s book and simplification serves a purpose, but for me, this flatness feels like a missing opportunity, that’s all.

What a cute book! I loved how it showed that the MC needed patience and growth to be in the band with her family! Such an important lesson for kids to learn! My own son is learning to play the piano and he is having the exact same struggles. He really related well to this story.

This is such a lovely picture book! The illustrations are colourful, beautiful, and perfectly represent the story and the character's emotions. I loved the added sounds of the music instruments and I think it'll be appealing to kids. This story is really sweet and follows Adela as she wants to be part of her family's mariachi band, but can't find the right instrument or place for her. Kids will be able to relate to her feelings and frustrations, and see how Adela finds a solution for it as she finally finds her place.