Tomas and the Galapagos Adventure

K-Gr 2—Readers discover two new worlds through the eyes of young Tomas, one in which he lives every day (Ecuador) and one that he visits in a dream (Galápagos). Or is it a dream? The strength of the story is the ability of the text and illustrations to highlight some of the diverse marine life of the Galápagos Islands. For example, Tomas dreams that he rides on a giant sea turtle, past a pod of humpback whales. The weakness of the title lies in a main character, Tomas, who seems uncharacteristically happy, at times bordering on unbelievable, even in the aftermath of falling and knocking himself unconscious. "Watch out! There is a school of hammerhead sharks just ahead. Tomas doesn't worry. He knows that hammerheads mostly eat squid." Rades's illustrations are bright and inviting, especially the spread of exotic animals. The book includes end pages with some facts about Ecuador and some common Spanish phrases.