Tortillitas Para Mama: And Other Nursery Rhymes, Spanish and English

I was born and raised in Central America and was searching for books that I could read to my daughter, that I could relate too. This book hit the spot! I love it because I have been able to share with my daughter rhymes that I heard my grandmother and mother say to me, that I had forgotten. My daughter is now 7 and we have memorized them and enjoy reciting them to each other in Spanish. There is one rhyme that is a little harsh, however, one must remember that these rhymes have been passed down from one generation to another, just like the Mother Goose rhymes,and unfortunately, this one particular rhyme gets lost in translation and sounds horrible in English. The Spanish language is a beautiful language and very rarely do the words translate into English very well, so please don't take it to seriously. So if you are looking to share your culture with your child or learn about another culture, this book should do the job.The bottom line is...we love it!

It seems like many people reviewing this book have been offended by a few lines and are upset that the rhymes and songs in this book don't live up to our modern cultural expectations. One has to expect that folk songs and rhymes coming from a different time and culture are going to contain ideas that simply are not politically correct. However offensive to us, these traditional verses give us insight into the culture of that time and can provide a springboard for conversation about important issues. If you do not feel that your child is ready for this type of conversation, simply leave out the verses that offend you. I really think that there are only about two or three lines in the entire book that might cause offense. Additionally, we have so many nursery rhymes and folk tales that we learned in our own childhood that do not align with our modern values and yet didn't seem to cause lifelong damage for most of us(think "Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater" or any of the Uncle Remus stories). Questionable lines aside, this book is beautifully illustrated and includes engaging rhymes that will help your child build vocabulary and phonemic awareness.

A nice addition to our Spanish language library. My toddler has loved this since 18 months old. A great bedtime book as the illustrations are detailed, calming and keep him interested. We do hand motions with the rhymes and my child even asks to read this book by clapping his hands (in the motion of making tortillas). My only complaint is that some of the rhymes have not been updated to reflect today's society. One rhyme goes something like, ". . . if I get my dress dirty, Mother will beat me". I've made up my own endings for these.

My three year old loves this book. We read it all the time and now she is reciting the rhymes to me! We are raising her bilingually and this book has helped a lot to introduce her to the Spanish language and culture.

I am a Kindergarten teacher and the kids in my class love this book. It presents the Spanish language and culture in such an accessible and engaging way -- the pictures are great! A lot of my English speaking students were interested in learning Spanish. I was amazed at how quickly both Spanish and English speakers picked up the language when I used chants and music in the classroom. It's magic!