Número Uno

Alex Dorros and Arthur Dorros
Abrams Books for Young Readers (2007)
ISBN 9780810957640
Reviewed by Brianne Plach (age 9) for Reader Views (5/07)

I'm stronger than you are! I'm smarter than you are! Of course, we all have heard this from our brothers or sisters. And even from us. " Número Uno" has two main characters, Hercules and Socrates. They both claim to be the best and most helpful in building a bridge in their small town. Socrates came up with the idea of building the bridge but Hercules was sure he was more valuable. An old man and a young boy got tired of listening to these two fighting. Then these two go away and work out their differences. They were both so sure that they would be missed greatly. Instead when they return, they find out that they were missed, but not for their individual strengths; they were missed for their weakness.

"Número Uno" is an excellent book about teamwork. It shows that claiming to be the most valuable does not pay. The pictures in this book are very beautiful and add joy to the script. There are Spanish words included in the script making this a great book for someone who is interested in that language. This book is geared for children ages 4-8.  I am older than this book's target market but I really loved the story!

Note from Brianne's mother: Brianne loved the pictures and storyline of this book. She will be starting to learn the Spanish language next year in school and this book gave her great exposure to some Spanish words.

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