My Piano
by Jen Fier Jasinski (Goodreads Author), Anita Bagdi (Illustrator)

4.5 out of 5 stars
A little girl prepares for her recital. She explains to the reader about all the different parts of the piano in a sing-song rhyme. We learn about the frame and strings inside the piano, and how the pedal controls the dampers, and how the keys control the hammers which strike the strings. When it’s time for the recital, the little girl is nervous, but she takes a deep breath and focuses on her music. She shares the beautiful rhythms and cadences with her listeners. The music flows out of her instrument, and there is thunderous applause!

Alma and How She Got Her Name
by Juana Martinez-Neal (Goodreads Author)

3 out of 5 stars

Alma has a very long name. Alma Sofia Esperanza Jose Pura Candela. It’s so long that it won’t even fit on the paper when she tries to write her name! She asks her father why she has such a long name, and he explains that Sofia was her grandmother. Esperanza was her great-grandmother. Jose was her grandfather, and Pura is her great-aunt.
Alma shares special things in common with all her family. She loves to paint like her grandfather. She loves flowers and birds like her grandmother. The heritage that she shares with them is a part of who she is, so her name fits her just right.