A celebration of good neighbors and good foodMama Provi lives on the first floor of a tall apartment building. Her granddaughter, Lucy, lives on the eighth floor. But Lucy can't come to visit -- she has the chicken pox. Mama Provi knows just what will cheer Lucy up: a yummy pot of arroz con pollo (chicken with rice).As Mama Provi climbs the stairs to Lucy's door, she meets several neighbors, each with something delicious to trade for a bowl of her rice. By the time she reaches the eighth floor, Mama Provi's pot of rice has become a multicultural feast, complete with all the fixings, and apple pie for dessert. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

In her picture book debut, Rosa-Casanova presents a tale of ethnic culinary delights. Mama Provi and her young granddaughter Lucy live in the same apartment building. When Lucy falls ill with the chicken pox, Mama Provi plans to carry a pot of her special arroz con pollo up the eight flights of stairs to her ailing granddaughter. As she stops on each floor, however, Mama Provi smells other wonderful foods and soon is trading her rice for bread, frijoles negros, apple pie, etc. By the time she reaches Lucy's apartment, Mama Provi's bags are laden with a multicultural feast. Rosa-Casanova sprinkles her text with Spanish phrases and presents an accurate portrait of an urban building, although she skates a little close to ethnic stereotyping (an African American woman contributes collard greens; an Asian woman offers tea). The author's upbeat writing style and Mama Provi's energetic personality, however, prevent the story from slipping into patness. Roth (Pearl Moscowitz's Last Stand) strikes an intriguing balance between pale washes and vibrant colors and, in his signature style, he spatters his scenes with flecks of paint that seemingly shower from his subjects, dressed here in spiritedly mismatched prints. He depicts Mama Provi from a variety of uncommon perspectives as she wends her way up staircases and through narrow hallways. Friendly faces and the warm exchanges between characters take center stage in each spread, creating a truly neighborly mood. Ages 5-8. Copyright 1997 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

K-Gr 3--When her granddaughter Lucy is sick, Mama Provi makes a big pot of arroz con pollo for her and sets off on the journey from her first-floor apartment to Lucy's eighth-floor home in the same building. On each floor, Mama Provi trades a bit of her rice with a different neighbor, receiving a new type of food each time. By the time she finally reaches Lucy, the two have a tremendous and varied feast. Mama Provi makes each trade "en un dos por tres" ("something like `lickety-split'"), a pleasant refrain repeated throughout. Most readers will figure out where the rather wordy story is going right away, so the final meal is rather anticlimactic. Though the action of trading foods is repeated several times, the language and conversations are different enough to avoid monotony. The watercolor illustrations also add interest, offering varied perspectives of hallways, stairs, and apartments. The soft colors used for the people's clothes and food stand out nicely from the tans and off-whites in the background, reinforcing the warmth of the building's community. The foods and neighbors are almost too neatly varied in a multicultural fashion, as Senor Rivera offers black beans; Mrs. Johnson, an African American, trades collard greens; and Mrs. Woo gives tea. The book avoids preachiness, however, by focusing on the neighborliness rather than the individuals' backgrounds. The result is a thoughtful, gentle, and satisfying story.Steven Engelfried, West Linn Public Library, OR Copyright 1997 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Ages 5-8. When her granddaughter, Lucy, comes down with the chicken pox, Mama Provi cooks a big pot of arroz con pollo, packs it in a giant shopping bag, and starts the journey from her first-floor apartment to Lucy's apartment on the eighth floor. On the second-floor landing, "a wondrous smell tickled her nose," prompting Mama Provi to barter a bowl of her chicken with rice for a chunk of Mrs. Landers' crusty bread. And so it continues: on every floor, Mama Provi dips into her pot and makes an exchange: a bit of Senor Rivera's frijoles negros, a generous portion of Mrs. Johnson's collard greens, a pot of Mrs. Woo's tea. Roth's decorative, boldy colored watercolors make intriguing use of perspective and nicely portray Mama Provi's multicultural world. A charming debut for the author, this is a wonderful celebration of food and culture, friends and family. (Reviewed May 15, 1997)0689319320Lauren Peterson From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.