Joe speaks English. He loves soccer. José habla español. A José le gusta el fútbol. This story is in English and Spanish! Hola, Joe. / Hi, José. I have my uniform. /Tengo mi uniforme. I am ready. / Estoy listo. Two boys, an English speaker and a Spanish speaker, are on the same soccer team. They have their uniforms and their cleats. They can both juggle the ball. At first, the boys must wait on the bench. But when the coach lets them in the game, both Joe and José score goals. “We win,” says Joe. “Ganamos,” says José. Perfect for preschoolers, kindergarteners, and first and second graders who are learning to speak or read English and Spanish. A delightful reading experience for bilingual families. René Colato Laínez, a teacher in a bilingual kindergarten classroom, has crafted an ingenious story that authentically and naturally uses conversation to introduce children to English and Spanish. The fun friendship story engages children, while simple words, short sentences, and a glossary reinforce learning. Nomar Perez, illustrator of best-selling children’s books as well as greeting cards, has a bright, bold, colorful, kid-pleasing style that invites readers to befriend the characters in this book. René was raised in El Salvador and Nomar in Puerto Rico. You will also like Let’s Be Friends, Seamos Amigos , by René Colato Laínez; illustrated by Nomar Perez. PreS-Gr 2-Let's Be Friends and We Play Soccer offer bilingual stories for the very young or for those new to the ­Spanish/­English language. Although Joe speaks English and Jose speaks Spanish, the language barrier does not keep these two kindergartners from becoming friends. Each time Joe speaks, Jose replies by saying the same phrase in Spanish. In Let's Be Friends, the boys learn to share paints as they create beautiful pictures during class. Joe says, "Let's paint," and Jose replies, "Pintemos." In We Play Soccer, the boys learn teamwork as they work together to help their team score the winning goal. Joe says, "Our team is losing," and Jose responds with, "Nuestro equipo esta perdiendo." Colorful artwork and detailed pictures keep readers engaged. VERDICT Both books offer a simple story with delightful characters for beginning readers or those learning a new language.-Martha Ricoα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. "The bilingual sentence repetition . . . creates a realistic and seamless narrative that young children can easily follow while developing both English and Spanish skills. The illustrations are vibrant. . . . A bright, sweet story about friendship, teamwork, and the joy of soccer." —Kirkus Reviews "Colorful artwork and detailed pictures keep readers engaged. . . . a simple story with delightful characters for beginning readers or those learning a new language." —School Library Journal René Colato Laínez is the author of bilingual picture books, including Senor Pancho Had a Rancho, Vamonos! Let’s Go! , and Playing Lotería, which was nominated for the Texas Star Book Award – the K-6 bilingual counterpart to the Texas Bluebonnet Award. He is also author of Let’s Be Friends, Seamos Amigos , a companion book to Let’s Play Soccer, Juguemos al Fútbol . He lives in California, where he teaches a bilingual kindergarten class. Through his work as both an author and an educator, he hopes to help all children develop positive self-images. Nomar Perez grew up in Ponce, Puerto Rico, where “an amazing array of colors, sounds, and flavors” influenced his artistic life. He is the illustrator of two 2017 Amazon Best Sellers: All Day Long, God Loves Me and Everywhere I Go, God is With Me . He is a staff artist at American Greetings. He is also illustrator of Let’s Be Friends, Seamos Amigos, a companion book to Let’s Play Soccer, Juguemos al Fútbol . Nomar currently lives in Cleveland, Ohio.