* In this latest offering from Cinco Puntos Press, a serious subject is covered with a great deal of empathy. Its political message is unapologetically pro-union and labor. It tells the story of the successful Service Employees International Union''s (SEIU) "Justice for Janitors" strike in Los Angeles in April of 2000. The narrative centers on Carlito''s Mom who has to work odd jobs on the weekends in addition to her nightly shifts cleaning office buildings in downtown L.A. to support the family''s needs. The author does an admirable job of explaining, through the mother, why the strike is necessary, touching on salary issues as well as the desire of the workers for dignity and respect. Carlitos is only tentatively supportive until he goes to school and realizes that other children in his class also have parents who are joining in the strike.
In addition, his teacher tells the class about her own father''s participation in the farmworker''s strike led by Cesar Chavez years earlier. As he watches his mother blossom into a union leader during the course of the strike, the boy makes posters and even joins the picket lines. The bilingual text is technically correct and works well enough, although there are spots where the translator should have taken greater liberties with the Spanish-language text in order to produce less stilted sounding phrases. Delgado''s illustrations are powerful in their strong colors, distorted proportions, and skewed perspective. Rodriguez''s introductory essay describes the real-life woman who inspired this story and adds a touch of reality that brings the story home. Any school system or public library district serving a Mexican-American clientele should have this book on their shelves and in their classrooms. Also recommended for bookstores. -- Críticas , starred review * "Cohn shows exactly what strikes are, why they happen, and how people are affected.
The victory of the Justice for Janitors campaign in Los Angeles in April, 2000, served as the inspiration for this well-told story. Carlitos''s mom is a janitor who works both nights and weekends to make ends meet. Her decision to help lead a strike is based on her desire for more time with her son and better health care for her aging mother. Carlitos wants to help, but it is not until he sees his mother on television that he figures out what it is that he can do. The lively, information-packed text, presented in clear, colloquial English and Spanish, is matched by Delgado''s lively, detailed, primitive illustrations, brightly rendered in oil pastel and watercolor wash. A spread following the story is devoted to a factual account of one woman''s experience as a union organizer. Younger children will enjoy the story, but intermediate students will benefit from both the narrative line and the content. This is the rare crossover picture book that gives sound information on big issues with grace and ease.
A real winner for both school and public libraries." -- School Library Journal , starred review Political and passionate, this bilingual picture book about the L.A. janitors'' strike in 2000 gives a voice to contemporary urban Latino working-class families. With the English text at the tope of each page and the Spanish translation below, the story is told in the first person by Carlitos, a Mexican immigrant child, whose widowed mother works cleaning offices nights and weekend but still can''t manage to support the family. After Mamá tells Carlitos that she is helping to organize a janitors'' strike for a union, Carlitos gets support at school from his teacher and classmates, and he joins the march with a sign that reads: "I love my Mamá. She is a janitor!" Delgado''s bright, active pastel pictures, much like poster art, are reminiscent of the work of Mexican artist Orozco, with pulsing scenes of marching crowds in the streets as well as warm close-ups of people at work and home. Carlitos'' story is framed by lots of politics for group discussion, and the inside of the dust jacket is a poster with art and text about labor history.
-- Booklist "Focusing on the event in April 2000 that united 8,000 workers in the Justice for Janitors Campaign, ¡Si, Se Puede!/Yes, We Can!:Janitor Strike in L.A. by Diana Cohn, illus. by Francisco Delgado, trans. by Sharon Franco, chronicles the proceedings through the eyes of one female worker''s son. An opening color-pencil sketch in fiesta-bright colors shows Mom tucking in Carlitos for bed before she leaves for work. She explains to her son the need for a strike, and a series of spreads chart the strikers'' progress. A final spread profiles union organizer Dolores Sanchez; the dust jacket doubles as a poster that explains labor unions and strikes, along with a poem by Luis J.
Rodriguez." -- Publishers Weekly "¡Sí, Se Puede! ¡Sí, Se Puede!" cries the crowd of underpaid janitors in this historical fiction picture book based on the janitor strike in Los Angeles, California in the year 2000. The book uses historically accurate details to tell about the strike while it uses a fictional family to make the book more personal. Carlitos is a young boy whose mother tucks him in every night and heads off to work as a janitor in a large office building. One evening, she tells Carlitos that she cannot take care of him and his grandmother the way she wishes she could because of the poor working conditions and that she and the other janitors are going on strike. The janitors are underpaid and work long hours, even on the weekends. As bathrooms go unclean and trash piles up, Carlitos is exposed to the importance of what his Mamá is doing. One day at school, Carlitos'' teacher even talks about it.
He realizes that he is not the only student in his class that has a parent involved. The children decide that they will combine together to help their parents out. Carlitos and his friends meet together to paint signs. They plan on rallying along with their parents. Carlitos makes a sign that says, "I love my Mamá, she is a janitor!" After three weeks the strike ends and the janitors receive the pay raises and respect that they have deserved and waited for. -- Creative Nonfiction, vol. 73 "Chicano artist Francisco Delgado captures a pint-size view of the janitor strike in L.A.
by literally looking up into the action. The story is told from the point of view of the son of one of the participants in the Justice for Janitors strikes of 2001. The simple, bilingual text faces full page, full color illustrations that make the dilemma and courage of these workers, their families and neighbors come alive in a way that children will understand. Readers will want to cheer when the kids in Carlito''s class show their support by making signs for the demonstrators (and in the process discover how many families in their barrio are involved). In our increasingly serviced-based economy, many Latino workers in urban areas today are facing the same struggles that farm workers experienced in the fields. In addition to the story, there is an excellent essay by Luis J. Rodriguez about Dolores Sanchez, a real woman not unlike Carlos'' mother. Teachers and older students will be facilitated in their exploration of the issues by the inclusion of a poster and the URL for the Justice for Janitors'' website.
This is an important story that impacts the children we serve and needs to be on our shelves. Recommended for the non-fiction collection of school and public libraries, and academic Chicano collections or libraries with a focus on labor issues." -- Reforma "Hotel workers are currently on strike in San Francisco, and many of the students I work with have family or family friends on the line. We talk about the strike and speculate about its outcome. Recently I discovered a children''s book that is one of those rare books that tells a tale as interesting to high school students as to kindergarteners. Si, Se Puede! Yes We Can, by Diana Cohen, is narrated by a child who tells the story of his mother, a janitor in a Los Angeles highrise who is out on strike. It portrays dignified people, working hard to make their way into society and fighting for their rights.The book, with its essay by Luis Rodriguez, centers on the successful janitors'' strike in Los Angeles, but it could just as well be San Francisco and the current hotel workers'' strike.
This moving story shows how the young narrator is drawn into the world of labor struggles." -- Rethinking Schools Skipping Stones Honor Book, 2002 Honor Book, Jane Addams Peace Award, 2002Vermont Center for the Book Top Ten Diversity Book, 2002 Vermont Center for the Book Top Ten Diversity Book, 2002.