Illustrated by Earleen Griswold
Join us in this fun and educational journey through the Caribbean islands, one letter at a time.
From Aruba to Trinidad and from Alligator to Yam, you will learn the names of many of the islands, plus fascinating facts about them. A Caribbean astronaut? From which island? Seals in these tropical waters? An island with over 300 rivers? And what is a cokí?
With beautiful illustrations by Native American artist Earleen Griswold, drawn during her years living in the Virgin Islands, this is a book that you and your family will enjoy opening again and again. It will captivate, entertain, and educate readers from any part of the world.
And wait until you see what they did with the Z…
Language: English
Recommended Age: 7-11
ISBN-13: 978-0-9725611-8-1
Publication date: October 2007
Format: Hardcover, 64 Pages
Product dimensions: 9.5” (w) x 11” (h)
Price: $19.95
Click here to purchase the book on Amazon.com
“This very original alphabet book gives brief descriptions of many aspects of the geography, animal species and history of the Caribbean. Even though a reader might consider an alphabet book as appropriate only for beginner readers, this one has so much information and poetic language, that older, more mature children will benefit from the information conveyed. Colorful and detailed naïve illustrations accompany the text. The best part of the book is finding out what the Z means to the Caribbean”.
— 2008 Americas Award Commended Title
“A Caribbean Journey from A to Y, written by Mario Picayo and illustrated by Earleen Griswold, describes insular portions of the Caribbean region in a manner that truly teaches and delights the child reader for whom the book is intended. Told as an account of the letters of the alphabet, the verbal side of the story engagingly caters to the child’s curiosity offering invaluable information about the flora, the fauna, the landscape, and the human populations of the region. Picayo delivers historical details throughout with beautiful simplicity, as in the explanation of “what happened to Z,” which alerts readers to the slavery period and the presence of Africans in the cultures of the region. With equal command of well chosen details, Griswold’s visual side of the story of A Caribbean Journey from A to Y depicts the rural, the urban, the past, the present, tradition, and change without resorting to binaries, while giving women their due at the center of life in the Caribbean and suggesting the region’s racial and cultural diversity. The images and the words combine to disrupt many of the visual and discursive stereotypes that often recur in representations of the Caribbean. I can think of no better book for children to begin the lifelong adventure of knowing the Caribbean”.
—Silvio Torres-Saillant, Author of An Intellectual History of the Caribbean
“Mr. Picayo, from his personal experiences, has compiled a fascinating collection of historical and natural facts. All young people in our islands and elsewhere, would gain immense knowledge and enjoyment from the lively narrative and brilliant illustrations. A Caribbean Journey should be on everyone’s reading list.”
—Prof. Roy L. Schneider, M.D., Former Governor, United States Virgin Islands
“From a Caribbean perspective, this book is relevant to children living in the Caribbean and also to those children living outside the region. A Caribbean Journey is a must have in every library, and great learning tool in which a person of any age could pick up and learn a thing or two.”
—Myron Jackson, Executive Director of the Virgin Islands Cultural Heritage Institute
Click here to read more selected reviews.
A Caribbean Journey Given as Gift to First Lady Michelle Obama
Mario Picayo invited by Office of Cultural Education To Present “A Caribbean Journey” at Virgin Islands Council on the Arts, May 2008
Hora Hispana: El Caribe y la voluntad de una niña (The Caribbean and the Will of a Young Girl)
U.S. Virgin Islands Selects “A Caribbean Journey” as Holiday Gift to Children, December 2008
