Marisol McDonald and the Monster/ Marisol McDonald y el monstruo

In her third bilingual picture book, Marisol McDonald, who is of Scottish and Peruvian descent, highlights her love of words that begin with the letter m, except for one: monsters. After a couple nights of less-than-great sleep, Marisol takes control of her fear by making a friendly three-legged sock monster. Beyond the full Spanish translation of the story, Brown integrates occasional Spanish words into the English recounting in a way that feels natural to Marisol’s daily experience (“If monsters were real, would they have mamis?” she asks her Mami). Her anxieties about the unknown are relatable, and Palacios’s cozy mixed-media images never let things get too scary for readers with their own insecurities regarding los monstruos. Ages 5–8. [em]Author’s agent: Stefanie Von Borstel, Full Circle Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Kendra Marcus, Bookstop Literary. (Apr.) [/em]