for reading aloud. In her first novel, popular picture-book author Johnston tells a warm, upbeat story of a Mexican family newly arrived in Los Angeles. The narrator is Arturo Rodriguez, 11, whose present-tense account is filled with Spanish expressions and the physical details of daily life at home, at school, and in the barrio. The first chapter will touch many immigrant kids: the children are tempted to assimilate after their teacher anglicizes their names, but Arturo's abuelita persuades them to hold on to who they are and take their names back. At times Johnston overdoes the local color with too many similes, and some characters are sentimentalized (not that anyone will object to the angel librarian). There's a scary gang and a drive-by shooting, but order is restored and the climax is the family celebration of navidad, warm and sweet and silly, glowing in the candlelight. The small size of the book is inviting, with clear, spacious type and a small illustration at the head of each chapter.

Junior-high schooler Arturo describes key events--e.g., a rewarding search for a missing cat, surviving a drive-by shooting--that have unfolded since he and his close-knit family moved from Mexico to Los Angeles three years earlier. The book lacks a novel's momentum, but each storylike chapter is engaging thanks to the precocious Arturo's funny, self-deprecating narrative style; he will remind readers of a Latino Holden Caulfield. Glos.

Sweet as Mexican dulces , here's an episodic story about life in the Los Angeles barrio. Picture-book veteran Johnston ( Uncle Rain Cloud , not reviewed, etc.) presents her first novel for children, and what a treat it is. Arturo's close-knit family, who arrived from Mexico only three years ago, stands together against the ugliness of the world. "In L.A. there's bad. Druggies. Gangs. Thieves, lifting stuff from houses like army ants." But as Arturo's father says, "In life there is bueno and there is malo . If you do not find enough of the good, you must yourself create it." Vivid, poetic language liberally spiced with Spanish introduces a cast of supporting characters who all in their own ways work to create good, including Leo Love, who returns the family's beloved cat when she gets lost; "Coach Tree," an unidentified retired NBA player who becomes assistant coach to Arturo's basketball team; and Ms. Cloud, the librarian who puts just the right books into the children's hands. When a drive-by shooting threatens all that these people have done, Arturo takes it upon himself to create more good. His personal growth is marked in the opening and closing moments: at the first, he takes back his name from a teacher who tries to "gringo-ize" it; at the last, he works to take the barrio back from the chaos within it. Arturo's narration is by turns wise, witty, and heart-breakingly innocent. Good spirit pervades this narrative, just like the aroma of Abuelita's chiles rellenos. Maravilloso! (glossary, not seen) (Fiction. 9-13)

Gr 4-7-This novel set in East Los Angeles provides a glimpse of the daily life of an extended Mexican-American family rich in relationships, if not in material possessions. Rather than a linear plot, the vignettes introduce readers to 11-year-old Arturo's family, school life, neighborhood occurrences, and holiday celebrations. Spanish words and phrases are sprinkled throughout as are descriptions of mouth-watering dishes constantly prepared by the boy's Mami and Abuelita. The characters are likable and warm, even if the voice of Arturo seems to be a bit too adult for his years. The message is positive and the episodes, while occasionally serious, are more often humorous and gratifying.-Sharon McNeil, Los Angeles County Office of Education Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.