Books
Reading Made Simple!
I write some of the easiest books for language learners, specifically designed for beginner and emerging readers.
- My books are crafted with a limited vocabulary and in an Easy-to-Read format to ensure simplicity and accessibility.
- Written with under 150 headwords, including cognates, they are in the beginner range on the Extensive Reading Foundation Grading Scale.
- They offer captivating narratives with meaningful messages.
- Themes include identity, resilience, environmental conservation, cultural heritage, and social challenges, weaving stories that inspire hope and confidence.
My books are:
- Accessible in their simplicity, featuring natural-sounding Spanish by a Venezuelan native speaker.
- Professionally edited for language and cultural sensitivity.
- Piloted in schools with beginning language learners.
- Designed with a progressive introduction of new vocabulary.
- Beautifully illustrated to support comprehension.
- Complete with glossary and side notes.
- Offering ample space for reading ease and maximum reading pleasure!
Beginner Books
Genre
Animal Fiction, Adventure
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 90 headwords:
60 different than English
and 30 cognates
Themes
Deforestation, Restoration of the Amazon Forest, Hope
Geographical Focus
Latin America
El último árbol | Level 1 | CEFR A1 | Beginner Level, Beginner Early (51-100 headwords)
It is the year 2064 and the Amazon rainforest is gone. All the trees have been cut down and all that remains is one ancient tree, a woman and a little blue bird. Follow the bird on its journey through a grey, empty world in search of a colorful future, trying to save those left behind and what’s left of the forest.
Genre
Animal Fiction, Action, Adventure
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 122 headwords:
67 words different than English and 55 cognates
Themes
Disability is not inability, reach your dreams, peer pressure, bullying, self-confidence, perseverance and friendship.
Geographical Focus
Venezuela
Mosca, ¡¡Mosca!! | Level 1 | CEFR A1 | Beginner Level, Beginner Mid (101-199 headwords)
In La Bonanza, the biggest open-air landfill in Venezuela, lives Mosca. Mosca is a common fly with an uncommon problem: she is a one-eyed fly. Mosca is a fly that can’t even fly straight! Mosca lives amid the garbage and collects trash for a living. But Mosca has a dream: she wants to be a great circus performer. ‘Pathetic loser!’ all the other insects say. Poor Mosca! But dreams are treasures… And sometimes we can find treasures in trash.
Genre
Animal Fiction, Action, Adventure
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 124 headwords:
92 different than English
and 32 cognates
Themes
Identity crisis, identity definition, self-determination and transition
Geographical Focus
Venezuela
Mosca en leche | Level 1 | CEFR A1 | Beginner Level, Beginner Mid (101-199 headwords)
Pata Sucia is a common fly with an identity crisis. She tries to make herself useful. But she feels like a nuisance. People say she is an annoying, dirty fly. No wonder Pata Sucia is unhappy with herself. She doesn’t want to be a dirty fly! Yuck! One day she meets the bees and sees how useful and loved they are. She decides: “I will become a bee!”. But the world around her doesn’t always affirm her truth. Can Pata Sucia reinvent herself when she is stuck in the body of a fly?
Genre
Animal Fiction, Action, Adventure
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 135 headwords:
80 different than English
and 55 cognates
Themes
Family, Perseverance, Self-assurance and confidence in one’s abilities, Selflessness, Faith, Maori Mythology, Little Blue Penguins
Geographical Focus
New Zealand
Itipurú y el monstruo del océano | Level 1 | CEFR A1 | Beginner Level, Beginner Mid (101-199 headwords)
Itipurú is the smallest chick of a blue penguin colony in New Zealand. Itipurú wants to be independent and swim and hunt for food like the older chicks, but he is still moulting and is grounded ashore. If he goes into the sea with baby feathers he will die of cold. When an earthquake shatters the island, all the animals that can swim flee, leaving Itipurú behind. Now he must reach the colony to survive, but will he make it with a vicious sea monster between him and his family?
Genre
Animal Fiction, Action, Adventure
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 154 headwords:
90 different than English
and 62 cognates.
Themes
Racism, albinism, sibling relationships, bats, destruction of the natural environment
Geographical Focus
Spain
Juliana | Level 1 | CEFR A1 | Beginner Level, Beginner Mid (101-199 headwords)
Juliana is special – a rare albino bat who lives with her brother in a secret cave in Spain. But Juliana is unhappy. She doesn’t seem to fit with her bat colony. Not only does she look different but she does everything differently. Far-fetched plans and crazy ideas, that’s her! One day, she feels a strange vibration coming from outside the cave. What is it? She senses danger but no one will listen. Juliana sets off to investigate and is drawn into an adventure that takes her far beyond the safety of her cave. Will she survive? Can she use her special abilities to save her colony from destruction?
Genre
Cultural Fiction
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 150 headwords:
89 different than English
and 61 cognates.
Themes
Food and Technology, Culinary Culture Preservation, Respect for Elders, Social Media Trends, and Paella Tradition
Geographical Focus
Spain
Arroz con cosas | Level 1 | CEFR A1 | Beginner Level, Beginner Mid (101-199 headwords)
Remei, a 75-year-old retired cook and expert in traditional Valencian paella, is outraged to discover that modern influencers are ruining her beloved dish on Instagram with bizarre adaptations like sushi ‘paella’ and ‘paella’ pizza. Determined to preserve the culinary integrity of this Spanish icon, she decides to tackle the social media world herself. With no internet experience and influence only within her small circle of her son, her restaurant, and her town, Remei sets out as an Instagram influencer to advocate for the authentic way to cook paella. In a sea of ‘rice with things,’ will she manage to impart her culinary wisdom and keep the tradition alive?
Intermediate-Low Books
Genre
Animal Fiction, Action, Adventure
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 150 headwords:
89 different than English
and 61 cognates.
Themes
Venezuelan mudslides of 1999, the Vargas tragedy, perseverance, friendship, fighting stereotypes and prejudices
Geographical Focus
Venezuela
Orión | Level ½ | CEFR A1 | Beginner Level, Beginner High (201-300 headwords)
Set in 1999 in the coastal town of Carmen de Uria, Orión is the story of a young Rottweiler misunderstood by many as violent. When a devastating storm causes a dam to burst, unleashing a river of mud that divides the town and isolates many children from their families, Orión finds himself in a similar predicament. As the town struggles with destruction and separation, Orión and the trapped children must find a way to survive and reunite with their loved ones. Inspired by true events, Orión is a moving story of hope, friendship and survival against all odds.
Genre
Fantasy, Magical realism
Vocabulary
Written in present tense with 375 headwords:
200 different than English + 175 cognates
Themes
Death & Bereavement, Loneliness, Father-Daughter Relationships, Grief, Fear, Connection with Nature, Supernatural Powers, Animal Rights, Animal Freedom
Geographical Focus
Venezuela
El brazalete mágico | Level 2 | CEFR A1 | Elementary Level, Beginner Mid (301-400 headwords)
Alondra lives in her family’s zoo, deep in the mountains of El Ávila national park in Venezuela. After the sudden death of her grandmother, Alondra is left alone with her father. She feels out of place, struggling to deal with her family heritage and her fear of the animals that slither across the land in silence. But what if her darkest nightmares become a source of strength? What if her worst fears become her strongest ally? Who is she really? How far can she go?
Intermediate-High Books
Genre
Historical Fiction
Vocabulary
Written in past tense with 440 headwords:
328 different than English + 112 cognates
Themes
Slavery, Independence, Women’s representation in History
Geographical Focus
Venezuela
Juana, la Avanzadora | Level 3/4 | CEFR B1 | Intermediate Level, (301-400 headwords)
Born into slavery in 1790, Juana Ramírez dreamt of a more egalitarian society for mixed-race, indigenous and black people. Juana hoped to join in the fight for independence against the Spanish Empire, but women were merely companions of men who were going to war. At the age of 15, she joined the fight and led an all-female artillery unit. Did Juana live to see her dream of freedom come true?