Drum Dream Girl: How One Girl's Courage Changed Music

by Margarita Engle, Rafael López (Illustrator)

Overview

Girls cannot be drummers. Long ago on an island filled with music, no one questioned that rule—until the drum dream girl.

In her city of drumbeats, she dreamed of pounding tall congas and tapping small bongós. She had to keep quiet. She had to practice in secret. But when at last her dream-bright music was heard, everyone sang and danced and decided that both girls and boys should be free to drum and dream.

Inspired by the childhood of Millo Castro Zaldarriaga, a Chinese-African-Cuban girl who broke Cuba's traditional taboo against female drummers, Drum Dream Girl tells an inspiring true story for dreamers everywhere.

This beautiful picture book was recognized with a Pura Belpré Honor. A strong option for those interested in women's history and Hispanic History topics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544102293
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/31/2015
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	NP (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Margarita Engle is a Cuban American poet and novelist whose work has been published in many countries. Her many acclaimed books include Silver People, The Lightning Dreamer, The Wild Book, and The Surrender Tree, a Newbery Honor Book. She is a several-time winner of the Pura Belpré and Américas Awards as well as other prestigious honors. She lives with her husband in Northern California. For more information, visit margaritaengle.com.

Rafael López grew up in Mexico City, where he was immersed in the rich cultural heritage and color of street life. He is the bestselling illustrator of many vibrant picture books, including the acclaimed Drum Dream Girl: How One Girl’s Courage Changed Music by Margarita Engle and Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood by F. Isabel Campoy and Theresa Howell. He has received the Pura Belpré and Américas Awards multiple times. Rafael López also designs and creates community-based murals nationwide. He divides his time between San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, and San Diego, California.

Editorial Reviews

Engle's poetic narrative combines with López's warmly ethereal folk-art illustrations to evoke a nighttime tropical dreamscape.

The New York Times Book Review - Maria Russo

"A beautiful account of a young girl's bravery and her important contribution toward gender equality in the creative arts."  — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"The heroine’s tenacity in the face of naysayers will inspire all dreamers, and the illustrator’s smile-inducing cameo on the last page emphasizes the universality of Millo’s story...For those looking for more nonfiction titles about female musical powerhouses." — School Library Journal (starred review)

"The text and illustrations work together beautifully here, creating a story that will imbue readers with inspiration and a yearning to make music of their own."  — Booklist

"A valuable addition to the growing library of stories about strong Latina women."  — Publishers Weekly

"With its emphasis on artistry and visual metaphor, this title bears a strong kinship with Yuyi Morales’ Viva Frida, but it also brings an accessibility that young viewers (and teachers) will appreciate."  — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

"Engle’s poetic text takes its cues from Zaldarriaga’s chosen instrument, its rhythm at times steadily assured and at others loose and improvisational...[E]very spread is full of motion, with some of the illustrations requiring a ninety-degree turn, as if the book itself has got to dance." — Horn Book Magazine

"Engle's poetic narrative combined with Lopez's warmly ethereal folk-art illustrations to evoke a nighttime tropical dreamscape."  — New York Times Book Review

From the Publisher

★ 2014-12-06
Pura Belpré winner and Newbery honoree Engle, known for writing free-verse historical fiction, introduces readers to Millo Castro Zaldarriaga with this illustrated poem, inspired by her subject's childhood. Millo became a world-famous musician at quite a young age. Before fame, however, as Engle's account attests, there is struggle. Millo longs to play the drums, but in 1930s Cuba, drumming is taboo for girls, "so the drum dream girl / had to keep dreaming / quiet / secret / drumbeat / dreams." This doesn't stop Millo; she dares to let her talent soar, playing every type of drum that she can find. Her sisters invite her to join their all-girl band, but their father refuses to allow Millo to play the drums. Eventually, her father softens, connecting her with a music teacher who determines that her talent is strong enough to override the social stigma. The rhythmic text tells Millo's story and its significance in minimal words, with a lyricism that is sure to engage both young children and older readers. López's illustrations are every bit as poetic as the narrative, a color-saturated dreamscape that Millo dances within, pounding and tapping her drums. Though it's not explicit in the text, her mixed Chinese-African-Cuban descent is hinted at in the motifs López includes. A beautiful account of a young girl's bravery and her important contribution toward gender equality in the creative arts. (historical note) (Picture book. 3-8)

Kirkus Reviews