Carlos and his family live in the mountains of northern New Mexico where they farm. Carlos's favorite vegetable is squash because his mother uses it to make calabacitas, a special dish with corn, cheese, chiles, and squash.

Carlos works hard in the garden and comes home caked with dirt at the end of the day. Like many children, Carlos hates to take baths. He goes into the bathroom, washes his face, and pretends that he has taken a bath. His mother warns him, "If you don't wash your ears, a squash plant will grow in them!" Carlos pays no attention to his mother's warning, however.

One day Carlos wakes up to find a little green squash stem growing out of his ear. He hides the stem from his mother by wearing a wide-brimmed hat. Each morning Carlos awakes to find the stem bigger and leafier. Finally he has to resort to twisting the vine around his head and placing the hat over it. Unfortunately, on one particularly windy day, the hat blows away. Carlos runs homes and takes a bath, scrubbing his ear until the squash vine disappears.

Happily, Carlos runs into dinner to find his mother has made him his favorite meal: calabacitas .

The story is told in both Spanish and English (on the same page). The text flows well and works wonderfully as a read-aloud. Arnold's illustrations are bold, colorful, and expressive, reminiscent of Diego Rivera. Included is a recipe for calabacitas.

Reviewed by the teachers at Education Oasis
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