The Last Stop on Market Street

 

(Image from Amazon.com)

SUMMARY

CJ and Nana always ride the bus.  CJ starts to ask a lot of questions, like: why do we always gotta ride the bus? how come we don't have a car? how come my friends never have to go here after church?

Nana answers his questions by saying how blessed they are to know all of the people who ride the bus with them.  They continue on their bus journey until they reach the "last stop on market street".  They get off the bus, walk down the broken-down and dirty road, and end up at the soup kitchen where they help serve lunch.  CJ claims that he's happy that they came. 

APA CITATION

La, Pena Matt De. Last Stop on Market Street. Paw Prints, 2016.

MY OPINIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS

I think this book is really cool because it addresses a lot of misconceptions that people often have.  I think I would like to read this book to by class to have a conversation about backgrounds and heritage.  This book could bring up the conversation that we don't really know where someone comes from unless we simply listen to their story and allow them to share with us.  This book also has some really good imagery and quotes that could be directed further in older elementary grades. 

PROFESSIONAL REVIEW

A young boy yearns for what he doesn’t have, but his nana teaches him to find beauty in what he has and can give, as well as in the city where they live.

CJ doesn’t want to wait in the rain or take the bus or go places after church. But through Nana’s playful imagination and gentle leadership, he begins to see each moment as an opportunity: Trees drink raindrops from straws; the bus breathes fire; and each person has a story to tell. On the bus, Nana inspires an impromptu concert, and CJ’s lifted into a daydream of colors and light, moon and magic. Later, when walking past broken streetlamps on the way to the soup kitchen, CJ notices a rainbow and thinks of his nana’s special gift to see “beautiful where he never even thought to look.” Through de la Peña’s brilliant text, readers can hear, feel and taste the city: its grit and beauty, its quiet moments of connectedness. Robinson’s exceptional artwork works with it to ensure that readers will fully understand CJ’s journey toward appreciation of the vibrant, fascinating fabric of the city. Loosely defined patterns and gestures offer an immediate and raw quality to the Sasek-like illustrations. Painted in a warm palette, this diverse urban neighborhood is imbued with interest and possibility.

This celebration of cross-generational bonding is a textual and artistic tour de force. (Picture book. 3-6)

Peña, Matt de la. “Last Stop on Market Street.” Kirkus Reviews, Putnam, 8 Jan. 2015.