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Summary
Summary
Named a Best Book of the Year by Kirkus and the New York Public Library
"Purely exquisite."-- Kirkus (Starred)
For kids ages 4-8, a charming and hilarious tale about capybaras: the beloved animal sensation capturing children's hearts!
Hens and their chicks love their warm, snug home. Life is simple and comfortable in the chicken coop, where everyone knows their place and worries are far away.
Until one day, when the capybaras appear.
To the hens, the capybaras are too big, too wet, and too hairy. They don't even follow the rules! But it's hunting season, and the capybaras need somewhere safe to hide. Can the hens learn to get along with their unexpected guests?
This delightful story shares the importance of opening our hearts to each other, no matter our differences, and the marvelous surprises that can happen along the way.
An Aldana Libros Book, Greystone Kids
Author Notes
ALFREDO SODERGUIT is an award-winning author and illustrator with more than forty books published throughout Latin America, Spain, France, and Italy. He also makes animated films with Palermo Estudio, a collective, which he founded with other illustrators and animators. His prize-winning animated film, Anina, is available on HBO and YouTube in English and Spanish.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
A multigenerational group of sweet-faced capybaras seeks refuge during hunting season in a gently drawn story that parallels human concerns. From the opening spreads of a well-fortified chicken yard from which humans occasionally take chickens, it is clear that Soderguit's text, which introduces readers to a "safe, agreeable place" where "life was comfortable and everyone knew what she was supposed to do," is less reliable than it seems. As the capybaras become gentle companions to one brave chick, and then its fierce protectors, the illustrations tell a subtler and more dangerous story of individuals who come to realize that their home is more prison than safe haven, and who slowly find safety and solidarity in the company of "wild animals." Employing a thoughtful economy of line and a palette limited to shades of gray, orange, and red, Soderguit's work makes adept use of illustration and design elements to convey meaning, truly honoring the picture book form. Featuring a cast of adorable, expressive animals, this is a simple but multilayered tale of overcoming prejudice, learning to question the status quo, and creating community. Ages 3--8. (Apr.)
Horn Book Review
"That was a safe, agreeable place." So begins the tale of a poultry farm upended by the arrival of a group of capybaras (escapees from hunting season), but astute readers will notice that the narrative does not tell the whole story. The chickens may be "comfortable and everyone knew what she was supposed to do," but we see the farmer (shown only from the shoulders down) carrying off the occasional hen who is likely to become supper. When the capybaras arrive, looking a bit stunned and definitely out of place, their "hairy...wet...too big" bodies sharply contrasting with the delicate, light shapes of the poultry, the hens announce a set of rules: "don't make any noise," "don't come near the food," and, worst of all, "don't question the rules." Happily, it doesn't take long for a tiny chick and the smallest capybara, in a series of wordless panels, to make friends. In short order, the capybaras and the hens learn to live together, safe from dogs and farmers, and when hunting season ends and the capybaras prepare to head home to their waterways, the hens decide to join the capybaras in a life of freedom. A final wordless page gives a glimpse of a future when the capybaras and now-free-range hens befriend neighboring sheep. The understated narration pairs brilliantly with the simple but expressive illustrations. Soderguit draws in shades of black on cream paper with accents of red to tell a gentle but subversive story of a community of animals coming together to survive. Read this one with Martin Waddell's Farmer Duck for International Workers' Day. Maeve Visser Knoth May/June 2021 p.122(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Hens meet capybaras in this translated gem, first published in Venezuela, from author/illustrator Soderguit. A "safe, agreeable" chicken coop with a red roof sits in a field. Inside, the hens know their roles, and plenty of food keeps them satisfied, even if occasionally a hen is taken away. Life's good. Then…the capybaras arrive. "NO! There was no room for them." But the capybaras cannot go home because of hunting season, so the hens permit the "hairy," "wet," "too big," and too numerous capybaras to stay if they accept the rules, a set of strict guidelines aiming to limit interactions between both groups. Naturally, a young capybara and a wee chick don't abide by these rules, enjoying a bit of play that stirs condemnation from the hens. "The rules were for everyone." But a surprising turn of events leads to an opportunity to tear down the barrier between hen and capybara--and perhaps beyond. On its surface, Soderguit's beguiling picture book offers a direct-enough message: find community in embracing others--even those that seem unfamiliar at first. Yet moments pop up where text and pictures seem at intentional odds, inviting readers to consider a deeper plunge. Aided by an ingenious use of the book's gutter, the sparse text and wordless segments make this tale an unusually meditative piece of work. Similarly, the artwork shuns color for the most part, evoking a muted spirit of optimism. Purely exquisite. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
The chickens live a good life, with plentiful food, a cozy coop, and a roomy pen--until their idyllic existence is interrupted by a family of bedraggled capybaras, on the run from hunting season in the marsh. The chickens are dismayed by the unwelcome addition to the farm, but they decide that the persecuted rodents may stay, as long as they abide by certain rules. After a young capybara rescues a wayward chick, however, tensions thaw, and the disparate groups learn to get along and even delight in each other's company. Soderguit's winning, mostly black-and-white illustrations are stylishly punctuated with occasional pops of color, and the book often lets the appealing artwork speak for itself in the form of wordless pages. Amado's translation provides simple text, but it has depth, offering a gentle introduction to the concepts of persecution and refugees. Sensitive youngsters may be concerned about some of the implications, but ultimately this is a call to love and welcome each other, no matter our differences, and it's proof that acceptance bears the sweetest fruits.
