Big Problemas (Juana & Lucas Series #2)

by Juana Medina Narrated by Almarie Guerra

Overview

When her mami meets someone new, Juana worries that everything will change in a humorous, heartwarming follow-up to the Pura Belpré Award-winning Juana & Lucas.

Juana's life is just about perfect. She lives in the beautiful city of Bogotá with her two most favorite people in the world: her mami and her dog, Lucas. Lately, though, things have become a little less perfect. Mami has a new hairdo and a new amigo named Luis with whom she has been spending a LOT of time. He is kind and teaches Juana about things like photography and jazz music, but sometimes Juana can't help wishing things would go back to the way they were before. When Mami announces that she and Luis are getting married and that they will all be moving to a new casa, Juana is quite distraught. Lucky for her, though, some things will never change - like how much Mami loves her. Based on author-illustrator Juana Medina's own childhood in Colombia, this joyful series is sure to resonate with readers of all ages.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Medina's cartoon-style illustrations done in ink and watercolor are vibrant and full of movement, beautifully capturing the full range of Juana's conflicting emotions as Luis becomes a part of their lives. Juana's big problema will resonate with many readers, who will look forward to hearing more about this spunky Colombian girl's life.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

In accessible chapters with plenty of white space and interspersed art, Medina guides readers through Juana’s experiences, incorporating nuanced visual details into the drawings to help articulate Juana’s thought processes and ranges of emotions. Through it all, Juana can always count on her family’s steady and secure love to help solve even the biggest problemas. The result is a thriving, buoyant, confident young Juana who demonstrates that balancing new changes with old favorites is achievable and, indeed, can be done with humor and grace.
—The Horn Book (starred review)

Medina’s illustrations are a wonderful addition to Juana’s first-person narration, truly bringing her emotions and quirkiness to life. Spanish words are sprinkled throughout the text but are italicized so that monolingual young readers will get their meaning through context cues. Medina’s charming follow-up to her Pura Belpré Award–winning Juana & Lucas (2016) doesn’t disappoint.
—Booklist

This gentle book brims with full-color illustrations of sturdy, big-hearted Juana and her bright, cheery world. Peppered with Spanish, it gives younger readers a window into a life both different and very like their own.
—The Plain Dealer

AUGUST 2019 - AudioFile

With seamless transitions from English to Spanish, narrator Almarie Guerra shares the tribulations of young Juana and her “most perfect” dog, Lucas. In fact, Juana finds much in her life perfect until she starts to realize that she is spending more time with her cousins and less time with her mami. What could be going on? Guerra voices Juana’s confidence and pleasure as she chats about the beauty of Bogatá and cooking with her grandmother’s sister. Distress comes through when Juana notices changes in her mother and meets Luis, her mother’s new friend. Juana expresses both reticence and rationalization as her life takes enticing new turns involving a country house, a camera, and wedding preparations. Best of all, Juana is joyous when Mami affirms that she is still her “favorite person ever.” A.R. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2019-03-12
Juana is back. This time she has to navigate the ups and downs of the changes brought on by the new person in Mami's life.

The way she sees it, "My life is just about perfect." She lives in Bogotá, "a city that smells of eucalyptus and fresh fruit"; she has the nicest neighbors; Mami is perfect; her abuelos are wonderful; her school "is quite good, too, though math and English are hard for me to learn." And of course, there is Lucas, "the most perfect perro in the whole entire world." Lately, though, her life is "a little less perfect." Mami has changed her hairstyle and is singing a lot, and Juana is spending more time with her relatives and less with Mami. Turns out, "Mami has a new friend. His name is Luis." As with its predecessor, the Belpré-winning Juana & Lucas (2016), the story is told from Juana's point of view with humor and drama. The typeset, text, and illustrations are playfully intertwined, with a sprinkling of italicized Spanish words throughout. Medina's cartoon-style illustrations done in ink and watercolor are vibrant and full of movement, beautifully capturing the full range of Juana's conflicting emotions as Luis becomes a part of their lives.

Juana's big problema will resonate with many readers, who will look forward to hearing more about this spunky Colombian girl's life. (Fiction. 5-8)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172417030
Publisher:	Brilliance Audio
Publication date:	05/14/2019
Series:	Juana & Lucas Series , #2
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

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