Big Bushy Mustache is a story about a boy named Ricky who is told he looks just like his mother. This makes Ricky sad because he is a boy and thinks he should look like his father. That day in school the students are asked to dress up to do a play about Cinco de Mayo. Ricky chooses to wear a mustache like the one his father has. Ricky brings his mustache home to show his mami and papi, but loses it along the way. The next day Ricky's mami surprises him with a new mustache. This mustache is a gift from his papi, who has shaved off his mustache. Now Ricky looks just like his papi. Ricky learns the only person he needs to look like is himself, and he should have listened to his teacher who told him to leave the mustache in his desk. The art changes per page, ranging from two page spreads to one page illustrations with frames and some without. ( )

This book was very adorable. The son was trying so hard to look like his father, that he took an item from class to show his father that he looked just like him. Then, the boy lost the mustache and did not get to show his father. Once he got the courage to tell his father what happened, he shaved his mustache off and gave it to his son. This teaches that it is not okay to take something without asking because there is a chance of it getting lost. ( )

Summary:
This book is about a class putting on a play in honor of the Cinco de Mayo celebration. Ricky’s teacher asks him to choose a costume. He settles on a big mustache so he can look like his Papi. He takes the mustache home, even though he isn’t supposed to, and loses it on the way. He dreads telling his teacher about the lost costume, but when he wakes up for school the next day, his mother hands him a new mustache. When he begins to ask her where it came from, his father walks in, cleanly shaven.

Personal Reaction:
I really enjoyed this book. It brings some light to a culture that not many people, especially children, know about. I love the way they showed Cinco de Mayo in a positive and exciting way.

Classroom Extension Ideas:
1. This could introduce a great Social Studies unit over Mexico. We would discuss why Cinco de Mayo was created.

2. This could also be used to introduce a language lesson. We would learn common
Spanish words.

Ricky is six and wants to play the role of a Mexican soldier in a Cinco de Mayo play but disobeys his teacher and sneaks the mustache home. When he loses the mustache his father helps him out with his own! This story is a fun companion to Cinco de Mayo celebrations. It is also one more book to add to the desperately needed father-son picture book canon in any early childhood classroom. ( )

When Ricky is cast as a captain in the class play, his is very excited to have the opportunity to wear a big, bushy mustache like his dad's. ( )