This is the humorous, heartwarming follow-up to the Pura Belpré Award–winning Juana & Lucas.

Juana is a perfectly happy and well adjusted little girl. It’s just her and her mami and her beloved dog Lucas. They live in the beautiful city of Bogotá. Now everything seems to be changing. Mami is styling her hair differently and there seems to be s new amigo named Luis with whom she has been spending a LOT of time. Luis is kind and teaches Juana about things like photography and jazz music, but sometimes Juana can’t help wishing things would go back to the way they were before. One day the inevitable happens, Mami announces that she and Luis are getting married and that they will all be moving to a new casa. This is extremely disconcerting to Juana. As this sweet story of family progresses, Juana learns some things will never change, like how much Mami loves her.

The book is based on the author-illustrator Juana Medina’s own childhood in Colombia. I think readers ages around 6-9 will find this second book in the series to be a joyful read.
I await the third book.

Juana and Lucas: Big Problemas is the second Juana and Lucas story set in Bogota, Columbia where Juana lives with her Mami and dog Lucas. This cute story is told in English with a few words in Spanish, that flowed well together.
In this story, Juana is not thrilled that her Mami has a new amigo in her life and this is a problem.
I enjoyed the Colombian culture and Juana’s silly thoughts as she works through this change in her mostly happy life.
The illustrations were adorable! This is a great young chapter book for children, introducing hispanic culture and family dynamics, such as a parent dating someone new.
Thank you to Candlewick Press and NetGalley for this advanced copy, my opinions are my own.
LanaLCole@yahoo.com

I really liked the way this book was told. We are seeing more diverse books for young children and books that are in both English and Spanish or with a little Spanish thrown in but this is the first I've seen that is geared for a little older audience. I think this is a good book for anyone, but I think it specifically fills a niche for slightly older first or second generation kids who may be losing their cultural and linguistic heritage.

A lovely sequel to the first. This story follows Juana’s story as her mother remarries. She worries about all of the changes that will happen and remembers her father.

Enjoyed book 2 and felt it had showed personality and humor a little more with Juana. Elicited a bit of wanderlust, would like to picnic with the family, can’t wait to see how things fare in book 3z

This delightful chapter book gives a realistic view of a young girl coping with the changes in her life resulting from her mother’s remarriage. Set in Bogota, Colombia, there are enough details to make it authentic, but also enough universal details to make the story recognizable to a wide range of readers. I know it is authentic because I lived in Bogota for two years. That soup described in the story is truly amazing! Colorful, varied illustrations add to the joy of this story. I highly recommend it.

Once again, Juana Medina has made a beautiful book! The code switching between English and Spanish is seamless and makes for really easy reading. People not familiar with the Spanish words will have plenty of context. The illustrations are great and pair perfectly with the text--a lovely continuation of a wonderful series!

Light, whimsical artwork balances this rather serious, real-life story of a little girl getting used to the idea of getting a new dad and moving house. It takes place in Bogota, Columbia, so the cultural references are a good peek into Hispanic culture (I want some of that soup!), while the story itself is a universal one. This book would be good for any early reader going through big family changes.

In Juana and Lucas's next adventure they face a great deal of change. Juana learns that her mother has a new friend and things are going to be a little different now. With the help of her friends, family and best buy Lucas, she figures out all out!

I love that this early chapter book is set in Bogata, Columbia, written by a native of the city. And I love the authentic voice of Juana as she processes changes in her world in a childlike way. I also like the smooth integration of Spanish terms into the text, without unneeded translation. However, this also makes the book less successful for ELL students whose native language isn't English. That being said, I do highly recommend this for most beginning chapter book readers. Review based on an ARC through NetGalley.