Product Description

Sixto Poblano really sticks out in a crowd. That's because he has six toes on each foot. And evil Boss Nova Boombatz, the head of all things grape, thinks Sixto has real potential. A boy with extra footage could really help him make grape juice! And so Sixto is whisked off to stomp . . . even though he'd rather play. Then one day, stomping inside a giant container, Sixto sees his chance to escape. He kicks out the barrel's cork, sending purply juice out in a flood, and freeing himself in the process. And that's how the Grape Lakes are formed!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1380047 in Books
• Published on: 2007-02-27
• Released on: 2007-02-27
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 40 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In the vine-fringed, semicircular village of Ear, famous for its "scrumptious grape juice," lives Sixto Poblano, a boy so named for having six toes on each foot. Sixto frequently goes barefoot: "At the shoe store there was never a good fit, and when he ran he often tripped." On the plus side, he excels at kickball, and during a game his powerful tootsies come to the attention of a juice magnate. Boss Nova Boombatz, a shady guy with a pencil mustache and porkpie hat, recruits Sixto for harvest time: "We in Ear pick, pluck, and stomp—that is our sworn duty," Boombatz says persuasively. Sixto reluctantly climbs into a wooden barrel of grapes and stomps "once, then twice, and because his spare toes made his feet so worldly wide, all the juicy grapes were now grape juicy." The other stompers are amazed: "Two stomps? Unheard of!" In florid prose, Madison (Pecorino's First Concert) elevates Sixto to legendary status, and details the downfall of taskmaster Boombatz. Potter (Sleeping Bobby), whose drily funny paintings emit a folklorish, Old World quality, may be the ideal illustrator for this book. She concentrates on Sixto's feet and pictures him up to his chest in grapes, wearing nothing but briefs, yet still implies his melancholic dignity. She brings a festive carnival air to the grape stomping rituals. The discomfiting combination of bare feet and "deeeliciousss!" grape juice only adds to the flavor of this tall tale. Ages 4-8. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 2—This story takes place in the village of Ear, which is famous for making scrumptious grape juice. One day, Boss Nova Boombatz, "the big head of all things grape," drafts Sixto Poblano (so named because he has six toes on each foot) to stomp on his fruit, thinking that the boy's extra toes will help him accomplish his task much faster. The other stompers are astonished to see that it only takes him two stomps to squish an entire barrel. The talented Sixto gets bullied by Boss Nova into working day after day, when he would much rather be playing kickball with his friends. Boss Nova agrees to let him go after he completes one more task—to squish a gigantic vat of grapes that takes 40 days for the townspeople to fill. As the village orchestra plays, Sixto dives in and stomps away for seven straight days until, in danger of drowning in all that juice, he kicks out the cork. The boy escapes, surfing a purple tidal wave that sweeps all the town's inhabitants onto a far hill and fills the valley with what becomes known as the Grape Lakes. He goes back to playing with his friends and Boss Nova is never heard from again. The stylized pencil, ink, gouache, gesso, and watercolor artwork is vintage Potter in all its quirky glory. Although Sixto is described as an amiable fellow, the pictures of a purple-stained boy in his skivvies may not be everyone's cup of tea. Many readers may find the American tall tale of Paul Bunyan making the Great Lakes more engaging.—Martha Simpson, Stratford Library Association, CT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author
Alan Madison is a film and television writer and the author of Pecorino's First Concert, which received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews, and just published Pecorino Plays Ball. He lives in New York City.

Giselle Potter is the illustrator of many children's books, including the just published The Boy Who Loved Words by Roni Schotter, and the ALA Notable Book Kate and the Beanstalk by Mary Pope Osborne. She lives in Rosendale, New York.

Customer Reviews

Rutgers University Project on Economics and Children
The make-believe village of Ear was renowned for its delicious grape juice. Every summer, all the women and men in Ear had the same job: they picked the luscious purple grapes that grew in the surrounding valley and stomped them into grape juice. At the head of this profitable venture stood big Boss Nova Boombatz, and given his stature and muscle, all the people dutifully picked and stomped without a fuss. But life in Ear changed when the Boss encountered a young boy with six toes on both feet, aptly named Sixto, who could not only boot the kickball farther than any other child, he could also stomp grapes with record-breaking agility. Boss Boombatz quickly thought up a plan that exploited Sixto's extraordinary productivity. This plan would have led to quick riches were it not for Boombatz's failure to account for Sixto's happiness and desire to play.

What a way to add some fun and imagination into the business of teaching substantive lessons in economics about productivity, natural resources, and human resources. This truly unique book makes a valuable addition to any collection of high-quality children's books. There is something about a boy with six toes on both feet who stomps grapes in his underpants that will have kids asking for The Littlest Grape Stomper again and again.