Ada's book gives readers a unique look at life in Cuba. Her writing style is quite poetically descriptive yet I often got confused as to whether I was hearing the young child Ada or adult author Ada. As an adult I found her story interesting, but as a child I'm not so sure I would enjoy this book.

Many favorite fairy tale characters are planning a party and they are busily sending letters to each other. Letters are often considered a lost art now, but this book shows what letter writing is like to younger children. The most fun, however, comes from the illustrations that enhance the information provided in each letter.

The book is most likely too complicated for 3 and under, but older children should enjoy the interaction of the characters and the story development. The book gets better with its second and third reads. What child doesn't want to hear it read more than once anyway?

It was a good book, but a bit lengthy. It is hard to keep a classroom full of 30 children's attention with this book. i would not recommend putting this as an adaption to a lesson.

I thought this book was beautiful, both in the dreamlike quality of the writing and rich pictures that vividly depicts the scene captured in snapshots frame don eery other page. However, granting this boy a vision and warning dream seems like stretching the alternative view that doens't glorify Chirstopher Columbus and instead focuses on how his arrival killed off the people with diseases andenslaved them. Perhaps I have been too saturated with this type of view so that the alternatives are just as annoying as the tradition "Columbus was wonderful" stories. Perhaps just telling a more middle line truth would be more helpful. Otherwise, the book is blessed with Yolen's storytelling talent, a touching story, and beautiful illustrations.