(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Ana Juan. Nearly ten years after being blown ashore--as a baby in an inflatable pool, fiercely guarded by a lavender-feathered bird--Pablo wants to know why he was placed into the ocean and why "Birdy" doesn't fly. Readers will identify with Pablo's curiosity about his past and his love for his pet. Spanish phrases are scattered throughout the lyrical text; occasional imagistic black-and-white illustrations reflect the mood.

Reviewer: Alma Ramos-McDermott | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2017

(2) YA Illustrated by Ana Juan. Human girl September (The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making and sequels) finds herself the reluctant new ruler of Fairyland. To complicate matters, she's obliged to compete in the Cantankerous Derby against all of Fairyland's previous monarchs. September's story has increased in poignancy throughout the series. Here, loose ends are tied up neatly, and loved ones reunited.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2016

(2) YA Illustrated by Ana Juan. Infant troll Hawthorn is raised by a human couple in early-twentieth-century Chicago. He lives an unhappy life as "Thomas" until meeting fellow changeling Tamburlaine; the pair blunders their way back into Fairyland. Hawthorn/Thomas, an outsider in the human world and Fairyland alike, provides a perspective on both worlds that's by turns funny and poignant. Spot art captures the bizarre beauty of characters and settings.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2015

(2) YA Illustrated by Ana Juan. In this third volume, following The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There, September returns to Fairyland and finds herself on a mission to stop a vengeful yeti from destroying his Fairy abusers--and everyone else on the moon. September is now wiser and sadder, and longs for autonomy; likewise, Fairyland and its inhabitants have become darker and more adult.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2013

(2) YA Illustrated by Ana Juan. September's (The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making) shadow, "Halloween," monarch of a liberated-shadow society in Fairyland's underside, plots to siphon away Fairyland's magic. September, along with shadow-versions of old friends and new companions, searches for the rightful heir to the throne. Valente again draws motifs from mythology, fairy tales, and Victorian fantasy to build an appealing world.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2012

(2) YA Illustrated by Ana Juan. Twelve-year-old September, tired of her middle-class WWII-era existence in Omaha, seizes the opportunity to explore Fairyland. She loses her shadow and her heart, meets her own Death, and rides a wild velocipede. When September finally confronts the tyrannical Marquess, she learns some harsh truths. Readers will find the wonderfully bizarre world of Fairyland and September herself compelling.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2011

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Ana Juan. On her eighth birthday, Eliza Prattlebottom wishes "that an elephant would come and take me away." After the wish comes true, Eliza's ninety-seven-year-old neighbor convinces her to return to her busy parents and not wish away her childhood. There's an awkwardness to the text and its message, but richly colored acrylic and crayon illustrations depict an appealing world of wishes.

Reviewer: Carrie Harasimowicz Sullivan

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Ana Juan. Wealthy Bibi purchases a jewel box containing two ballerinas. When she loses "her lovely girls," Bibi confesses she would "give up all I own to have you back again!" and two real-life girls appear. The richly colored jewel-tone art suits the surreal tale, gently spoofing matronly Bibi and her possessions. This transformation story contains equally witty text and illustrations.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2007

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Ana Juan. Elena, a Mexican girl, wants to be a glass blower like her father, but he rebukes her: "Who ever heard of a girl glassblower?" Undeterred, she dresses like a boy and travels to become an apprentice, where her work is a success, until she's ready to face (well, sort of) her father. The story is as unique and endearing as Juan's commanding acrylic and crayon illustrations. Glos.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Ana Juan. This lavishly illustrated biography argues that the seeds of iconic painter Kahlo's genius were planted in her childhood. Born in Mexico in 1907, Kahlo was stricken with polio at age seven and nearly killed in a bus accident at eighteen. During both periods of isolating bed rest, Kahlo developed and honed her artistic skills. Winter conveys much with a few well-chosen words, and the illustrations are awash with traditional Mexican folk-art motifs.

Reviewer: Nell Beram | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2002