LitPick Review
Vanusa and her family lived in a very cozy house together in Ponta Grossa, Brazil. While she was growing up, she was bubbly and had such a warm laughter until her mother became ill and passed away when Vanusa was eleven years old. Her dad tried picking up the pieces by trying to fill the empty space his daughter was feeling. No one could imagine that only a few years later, when Vanusa was sixteen, that another terrible heartache would happen. Her father was diagnosed with cancer and eventually passed away as well. Now she was alone, not knowing what would happen to her.
Luckily, the town of Ponta Grossa and the government stepped in to ensure that Vanusa would be cared for since she had no other family to help her out. They provided her a place to live, food to eat, and schooling so she could hopefully one day achieve her goal of attending college. But college in Brazil was extremely hard, and without the full necessary resources such as a computer or cell phone to study on, she was at a huge disadvantage. She was determined not to be broken, and she set her mind to raising money while still attending school. What did Vanusa do to raise money in hopes of putting it toward her college? Was she successful in finally making it into college?
Opinion:
This was a very endearing story that I think will captivate readers, young and old. Written as an authorized biography of Vanusa’s life, children will see how determined she was to try everything to make her dreams come true even though she was at a severe disadvantage every way she turned. I feel that children will see that if you put your mind to something, no matter how hard the obstacles might be, you can try reaching for the stars. They will see just how determined Vanusa was to try and raise money, although not much, but she would not give up no matter how tired she was before and after school. I feel that children can view her as a role model and when they experience an obstacle in their life, they can think of how determined she was to not let anything stop her from dreaming and working hard toward her goal of attending college one day.
Ms. Haragutchi created characters that were well-rounded and believable. It felt like Vanusa and her family could very well be living right next door to you, even though they lived in Brazil, because they were so relatable. When she lost each parent, readers of any age will feel the loss as if they lost a close friend.
Although it is not specifically mentioned who was the illustrator of the three-quarter page illustrations, it can be assumed that it was Nicole Haragutchi providing them for her book. They were produced by AI technology because of the bright colors and crispness and clarity of each picture provided. There was one thing that I would like to mention that was a bit of a distraction. The pictures were depicting Vanusa at different ages throughout the story, but when it was showing pictures that were of the same age, the details of Vanusa’s face were different from picture to picture. One would show her as the age mentioned, but the next page she had a much more mature face for the same age, and then the following page went back to a younger looking face. I also noticed in these same pictures her hair length changed from picture to picture with her being the same exact age. Even with these variations, the illustrations told Vanusa’s story well and readers will be entertained as they turn the pages.
Overall, Vanusa’s Dream is a story that can be enjoyed by readers young and old. The story is a delight to read, the characters feel like friends, and the illustrations are enjoyable to look at.
