Welcome to Book Explorers! It’s like a book club for kids that you can do anytime, anywhere. This month we’re talking about Lety Out Loud by Angela Cervantes. Find activities and discussion here.
When you’re feeling nervous or shy, what helps you feel brave? When Lety Muñoz volunteers at an animal shelter, she wants to speak up for the dogs and cats to help potential families see how great each pet is. Her first language is Spanish and sometimes English words don’t come easily to her, but she volunteers to write pet profiles, even though it’s difficult. Speaking up for animals makes Lety feel brave. Can she find her voice to speak up for herself, too?
Check out the book from any Denver Public Library location.
Librarian Liesel shares what makes Lety Out Loud such a special read:
Before you read
Explore a real-life animal shelter in this video field trip to the Front Street Animal Shelter in Sacramento, California.
Can you write an animal profile, just like Lety’s profiles? Write a description of this dog or this cat. Bonus! Can you use one of the words from Lety and Hunter’s challenge? Discover their meanings by looking them up in a dictionary, like Oxford Dictionaries (available with a library card).
- Supersonic
- Infectious
- Rigid
- Colossal
- Fusion
- Rambunctious
- Gush
- Beckon
- Scrumptious
- Cerise
Librarian Liesel shares more about writing animal profiles:
Make some protest art
Lety is finding the courage within herself to stand up for what she believes in. Exercise your own voice by making some protest art.
Librarian Jennifer shares how to get started:
What to read next
After you read Lety Out Loud, try one of these books about equity, justice, and finding your voice.
Nonfiction
- Woke: A Young Poet's Call to Justice by Mahogany L. Browne, illustrated by Theodore Taylor III
- Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family's Fight for Desegregation by Duncan Tonatiuh
Biographies
- Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: the Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Ekua Holmes
- Poet: The Remarkable Story of George Moses Horton by Don Tate
Graphic Novels
- Primer by Jennifer Muro & Thomas Krajewski, art by Gretel Lusky, letters by Wes Abbott
- Act by Kayla Miller, color by Jess Lome, lettering by Chris Dickey
Chapter Books
