DRUM DREAM GIRLWRITTEN BY MARGARITA ENGLE, ILLUSTRATED BY RAFAEL LOPEZ

BOOK OF THE MONTHNOVEMBER 2015

Drum Dream Girl follows a girl in the 1920s as she strives to become a drummer, despite being continually reminded that only boys play the drums, and that there has never been a female drummer in Cuba. The book is inspired by the true story of Millo Castro Zaldarriaga.

Why did Margarita Engle tell Millo's story as a poem?

When she walked underwind-wavy palm treesin a flower-bright parkshe heard the whir of parrot wingsthe clack of woodpecker beaks the dancing tapof her own footstepsand the comforting patof her ownheartbeat.

”The music led this story into a verse form. It needed rhythm, a tempo, and even a bit of rhyme.…Millo’s talent is boom boom booming!”

"I love to write about young people who made hopeful choices in situations that seemed hopeless. My own hope is that tales of courage and compassion will ring true for youthful readers as they make their own difficult decisions in modern times."

What does Margarita Engle like to write about?

"To channel Engle's words I realized early on that I needed to think abstractly. To switch from something concrete to abstract and back again. To dance intuitively between the two, criss-crossing the river of abstraction. I wanted to connect these two aspects of Millo's story and switch back and forth from reality to dreams. For this reason, on some spreads the moon has a face and sometimes it doesn't. When Millo dreams imaginary animals appear but at other times real creatures like a parrot whiz by during her walk in the park."

HOW DID THE ILLUSTRATOR DECIDE WHAT TO ADD TO THE

WORDS?

HOW DID RAFAEL LOPEZ START HIS RESEARCH?

“I’m always driven to learn all I can about my character, using books and the Internet. I dove into 1930s’ Cuba, gathering photos of trees, foliage, carnivals and, of course, Millo, her sisters, and their band Anacaona."

QUOTES AND PICTURES FROM THESE SOURCES:

http://rafaellopezbooks.blogspot.com/2014/09/find-my-rhythm-with-drum-dream-girl.html

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/beating-drum-womens-rights/#continue_reading_post

http://www.colorincolorado.org/videos/meet-authors/margarita-engle

http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=2243