Already established as a working pair (and artistic powerhouse) with their Vamos! series, Raúl the Third and Elaine Bay continue sharing their eclectic illustrations with the world through Strollercoaster, written by Matt Ringler. Awarded starred reviews by Kirkus, the Horn Book, and Booklist, Strollercoaster tells the story of a father and daughter (Sam) on their trip around the neighborhood to soothe arising fussiness when, as described through the toy blocks in the opening pages, everything feels “wrong.” Hints as to what's coming are depicted in the father’s panicked look and the alarm waves radiating from Sam, whose tantrum builds. So, to avoid disaster, it’s time to snap the seatbelt on the strollercoaster and take a ride. Without forgetting that safety is first (dialogue bubbles inform Sam to “keep your hands and feet inside at all times”), the pair takes off and the outing begins in a spread full of visual cultural references and playful use of language.

In fact, one could get lost in the details, sifting through all the cultural elements incorporated. Renderings of Hokusai’s iconic woodblock print The Great Wave Off Kanagawa (also referenced earlier in a toy block), a “Speedy” car delivering snail mail, and allusions to the Road Runner are only some of the subtleties incorporated into one single spread. Looking at color alone, which is Elaine’s domain, the full spectrum of the rainbow works to infuse the illustrations with energy. Elaine uses softer colors to paint the buildings, which are reminiscent of those in El Paso, Texas, where she grew up. That Southwestern city is also represented through the "915" on the door, El Paso’s area code.

Although not explicitly located anywhere in particular, the neighborhood’s bicultural identity also comes through in language. Bilingual text fills the sides of buildings, awnings, tags, and billboards. An expert in introducing text into his illustrations, Raúl plays with language by including multiple elements in his drawings. The building displaying the Hokusai work reads “HI, HELLO, HOLA,” and, lower in the building, there is “OLA,” which in Spanish means waves. The weaving of language and play in the story’s environment through the images is a multilayered nuance that involves multimodal reading and engages the audience, especially if they’re in-the-know about the myriad of enriching details filling the pages.

Although I could keep talking about the excellence in execution of this spread alone, the occurrences of onomatopoeia never let me forget that Sam and her dad are on the move — and on a coaster. The occurrences of "click clack" we see on this spread (and “click clicks" we see later), combined with the father and daughter on an incline, make us feel like we are on a rollercoaster, climbing the lift hill along with the pair, ready for the drop that will inevitably come with the turn of the page.

We speed through the neighborhood and find wonder in all the places Sam zooms by —a pastelería, with scrumptious looking baked goods; a basketball court — up and down hills and riding on walls while snacking through it all, with El Chavo del Ocho looking on. Sam rides her coaster around town, and the speed and air lines around her make her look like she’s flying.

Although the story is filled with energetic spreads, one of the most stunning moments comes when Sam and her dad enter a tunnel and enter the dark. The illustration, which looks as if it were rendered on rainbow-scratch paper, changes the mood of the story and slows the duo down as they head toward the light at the end of the tunnel. Once out, we discover that Sam has fallen asleep, to the relief of her dad (note the sweat drop of relief on his brow). And with a sweet final illustration in which father and daughter share the couch, we are reminded that we sometimes all need a nap to make everything “right” again.

Strollercoaster is award-worthy indeed, yet there’s much more to this story, in which we get a groundbreaking representation of a cholo-looking father with his knee-high socks, shorts, and a shirt buttoned only at the top. The care and love depicted in the relationship recognizes the rich diversity of the children this book has in mind as its audience, and the engaging visual narrative straps us into the story as we ride on the thrilling adventure of pacifying a child. 

[Read the Horn Book Magazine review of Strollercoaster here.]