Adelita

Written and illustrated by Tomie dePaola

A young woman vanishes at midnight, leaving only a shawl as a clue to her identity.

5.5/7 Bookroo experts·4.1/5 Goodreads · 1,660 ratings

40 pages· 1,830 words· Est. 15 min read-aloud· AD660L

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Bookroo's summary

Adelita, a kindhearted young woman, captivates Javier at his fiesta but vanishes at midnight, leaving behind a rebozo as the only clue to her identity. In this enchanting twist on the classic tale, will Javier uncover the mystery of the shawl and find his true love amidst jealous stepfamily schemes? Dive into a world where Mexican folk art brings a unique charm to a timeless story.

From the publisher

Hace mucho tiempo—a long time ago—there lived a beautiful young woman named Adelita. So begins the age-old tale of a kindhearted young woman, her jealous stepmother, two hateful stepsisters, and a young man in search of a wife. The young man, Javier, falls madly in love with beautiful Adelita, but she disappears from his fiesta at midnight, leaving him with only one clue to her hidden identity: a beautiful rebozo—shawl. With the rebozo in place of a glass slipper, this favorite fairy tale takes a delightful twist. Tomie dePaola’s exquisite paintings, filled with the folk art of Mexico, make this a Cinderella story like no other.

At a glance

Format: Paperback
Pages: 40
Words: 1,830
Reading age: 4–8
Audience: Picture
Lexile: AD660L

Themes & topics

Books about cinderella stories Books about Mexico Books about culture Books about places and regions Books about self-discovery

What readers & critics say

Reviews

5.5

out of 7

5.5

“I am a sucker for any book by Tomie de Paola, and for fractured fairy tales so this book has double appeal for me. I love de Paola's richly colored illustrations, love the humor he gets into his drawings, especially the glaring wicked stepsisters and imperious stepmother. I love the way he incorporates Mexican architecture and folk art into the illustrations, strengthening the sense of place that is the setting for the story. Although, in theory, I appreciate the bilingual aspects of this book, I found the Spanish a little distracting. The aspect of the book that I really love is that the part of the fairy godmother is played by Adelita's long-time nanny and that Adelita is able to speak and act for her self to a greater degree that one typically sees in a Cinderella story.”

Grammy

Trusted reviewer

5.5

“Tomie dePaola's illustration are as beautiful as this Mexican Cindrella story is.”

Marmee

Trusted reviewer

The author & illustrator