Emergency Quarters
by Carlos Matias; illus. by Gracey Zhang
Primary    Tegen/HarperCollins    40 pp.
5/24    9780063271456    $19.99

It’s a new school year, and Ernesto, an Afro Dominican boy wearing “lucky kicks” and “his favorite Mets cap,” is finally allowed to walk the six blocks to school without his parents. Before he leaves, his mom hands him a shiny quarter “for emergencies”—to call home using a pay phone if he needs to. Throughout the week, Ernesto saves his daily coin, despite temptations to spend the change on baseball cards, cheese puffs, or games at the arcade like his friends do. Friday arrives, and the irresistible smell of a street vendor’s empanadas at the bargain price of $1.25 is well worth the expense. Matias’s story is thematically rich, serving as an early math lesson on money and savings, while the depiction of a working-class family and community is matter-of-fact and welcome. Matias’s text adeptly conveys the internal world of a child as he explores his new independence, while adhering to his mother’s loving precautions. Zhang’s ink, gouache, and watercolor illustrations capture the warmth of Ernesto’s family’s apartment and pay homage to the vibrant Queens, New York, setting with such local landmarks as the 7 train and the Lemon Ice King of Corona shop. A note preceding the text gives context to payphones, quarters, and Matias’s real-life memories. Many details are snapshots of decades past, but the themes in the tender narrative are timeless.

From the July/August 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.