Overall, Olinguito Speaks Up is a cute, bilingual picture book about some less well-known animals. (I don't actually read or speak Spanish, so I can't comment on the Spanish portion of the book.)

I was surprised at how much darker the interior illustrations seemed to be in comparison to the cover. That's not to say they're bad; they just weren't quite what I was expecting.

While I appreciated the information provided about some of the animals, I found it disconcerting that some animals were referred to by full formal names ("Galapagos Pink Land Iguanas", "Pinta Island Tortoises") while others were referred to by non-capitalized, more generic names ("possum").

Note: I received a digital galley of this book through NetGalley. ( )

When the other residents of the cloud forest no longer want to hear the stories told by Tomas the Galapagos tortoise, Olinguito speaks up in support of those wonderful tales. Together, they share stories of extinct animals in both English and Spanish. I thought this book was great. I think children, especially shy children, will identify with Olinguito. I also think the lessons of respect for the environment and those who live here with us--told in two languages--are important.

(Provided by publisher) ( )

I received an electronic reviewer's copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by this book, which I only found via the publisher's invite on Netgalley. I speak a little Spanish, and I really enjoyed the format of short pages in English, followed by the same text in Spanish--it seems like it would be enjoyable and helpful both for native Spanish speakers learning English, and vice versa. Sometimes, this format did mean that I lost track of the plot, but overall, I liked it.

I saw formatting errors on a few pages, notably in the Spanish language part. For example, p. 30: "'Son todos muy listos'. Asintió Tomás". I also found both the beginning and the ending somewhat abrupt, though I appreciated the facts and stories sprinkled throughout.

The illustrations were fun and cute, and this book touches on themes like family, respecting your elders, and valuing the different backgrounds other people come from, while also teaching about nature and animals. I'm giving it three stars because I liked it but it's not necessarily the type of book I've come away from thinking I will remember it forever or it is one of my favorites of all time, but it is one that I can imagine recommending in good conscience to friends. ( )