La Noche Before Three Kings Day

It’s “la noche before Three Kings Day and all through the casa, everyone was stirring” in this festive “A Visit from St. Nicholas” iteration focused on a Latinx-cued family, portrayed with various skin tones. In Colón-Bagley’s rhyming Spanish-studded English lines, the child narrator wraps shoeboxes in anticipation of the visit, enjoys “scrumptious comida” and “jolly good fun,” and places their wrapped boxes beside the front door. Peeking from the window after bedtime, the protagonist spies the arrival via camel of kings Balthazar, Melchior, and Gaspar, whose glitter and panache shine right off the page as they distribute gifts to the wrapped boxes. Warm illustrations by Mesa honor family connection, food, and the fancifully portrayed kings in a domestic tale that evokes the holiday’s wonder. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)