Cascarones: An Easter Surprise / Una sorpresa de Pascuas

A young girl named Victoria eagerly anticipates Easter and the confetti-filled eggs, or cascarones, she and her parents make for the holiday. As always, the preparation begins in January, and they collect eggshells for months. Engaging illustrations by Aimee Del Valle show the family working together as Victoria describes the process of making the confetti-filled eggs, from gently creating a hole in the shell to drain the insides, to covering the hole with colored paper, dying them bright colors, inserting the confetti and decorating the colored shells. When Easter Sunday arrives, her dad hides the eggs at the neighborhood park, where all her aunts, uncles and cousins gather. Her younger brother Nicolás enjoys his first Easter egg hunt and quickly learns how to find the treasures. And when all 100 cascarones have been found, the boy is in for one final surprise! This bilingual picture book for children ages 4-8 is a joyous celebration of family and the Mexican-American holiday tradition of making—and cracking on each other’s heads!—eggs filled with colorful paper. Kids will want to try making their very own cascarones to celebrate the special day. Click here to watch Alicia Salazar in the APP Authors Speak series talking about her creative process.