¡Mambo Mucho Mambo! The Dance That Crossed Color Lines

When the band Machito and His Afro-Cubans “make a brand-new sound called Latin jazz” in 1940, everyone in New York City dances to it—Italian people such as Millie, and Puerto Rican folks like Pedro, the best dancers in their respective neighborhoods. But because of segregation, people from various backgrounds can’t dance together until 1948, when the Palladium opens its doors to all. The mambo dance accompanies the “bold new music,” and Millie and Pedro, creating “mambo moves for two,” eventually become the best mambo team in the U.S. Robbins’s prose is as musical as his subject: “The melodies were/ bright and brilliant./ They made you want to listen./ The beats were lilting and lively./ They made you want to move.” Velasquez’s characteristic, near-photorealistic illustrations, rendered in oil paint in a palette reflecting the time, add a dynamic fluidity to the historical atmosphere of this enlightening narrative nonfiction title. Back matter includes an author’s note with further historical context. Ages 7–9. (Oct.)