Just a Minute!: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book

I use this book for movement, we create a movement for each job that Grandma has to do. The students love it.

It doesn't matter which language you speak, you'll enjoy this hilarious trickster tale. Grandma Beetle tricks and annoys the strange skeleton, Senor Calavera, by saying, "Just a minute!" over and over again. The skeleton, who never speaks, may have been there to take her life. Each time she delays Senor Calavera, something funny and interesting happens. The sly look in Grandma Beetle's eyes lets you know that she is tricking Senor Calavera. Recommended for people of all ages, but use carefully with young children who may be afraid of skeletons.

I borrowed this book for my daughter from the library several times and then went ahead and just bought the book - it is so good. The Pictures are wonderful, the story very simple(from a child's perspective). Something about the grandmother preparing a feast for her grandchildren on the occassion of her birthday is very evocative of all kinds of warm childhood memories. My 3 year old ( I first read her this book when she was 2) loves the cadence of the prose. She learned to count to 10 in spanish from the book and, as an additional bonus, Senor Calavera has sparked her interest in the human skeletal system - she looks at the various bones and tried to feel them in herself - the ribs, the backbone, the collar bone... :D All in all, a highly recommended book. Did I mention wonderful illustrations... gorgeous, gorgeous colours!

Yuyi Morales is having a great year. After creating a series of deft and meaningful illustrations for Kathleen Krull's heartfelt Cesar Chavez picture book, "Harvesting Hope", she wrote and illustrated a second 2003 Pura Belpre winner. "Just a Minute" is both a trickster tale and a basic counting story. Taking the dark conceit of outwitting death through meticulous partying, the story is a delightful dance with the macabre. It is Grandma Beetle's birthday, and a most unexpected guest is at the door. Standing as nice as you please is Senor Galavera. The handsome skeleton informs the older woman that it is just about time for her to go away with him. Grandma Beetle delays him, asking to have time to sweep her ONE house. Then she has TWO pots of tea to boil. Next, it's THREE pounds of corn to make into tortillas. As more and more time goes by the previously patient Senor Galavera becomes more and more impatient. Finally, it's party time and the finicky skeleton finds that he's had so much fun that he'll be sure to come back for Grandma Beetle's birthday at the same time next year. Who can resist the idea of outwitting Death himself through a simple counting game? Better still, for every English number pronounced there's a Spanish one for easy translation. But as fine an author as Ms. Morales is, she's an even better illustrator. First of all, Senor Galavera is a fabulous site. Anyone familiar with a skeleton from the Day of the Dead will appreciate his appearance. Sporting a jaunty fedora and a delicately detailed body, he's really quite attractive. His mouth is a series of blue and orange alternating stripes. His eyes are the stars of the anise seed. Better yet, along his vertebrate, forearms, forehead, and kneecaps are tiny intricate details. Grandma Beetle is more than a match for this supposedly dire apparition. She's even able to coerce him into donning an apron (falling loosely on his bony hips) and mixing some pots of delicious food. Kids reading through this book several times will enjoy locating the sly kitten that follows our two heroes about from page to page. To my mind, the best part of these pictures is their luminosity. They pulsate with the deep blues, greens, reds, and other shades that line the pages. "Just a Minute" has rapidly become my number one favorite illustrated picture book of the year 2003 (outside of my beloved "Diary of a Wombat" that is). A book that intrigues, teaches, and is filled with a deep emotional warmth such as this book has is a rare find. Be sure to read it and then share it with everyone you know.