• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

JillBJarvis.com

Things to do in Houston!

  • Home
  • Events Calendar
    • Houston Events for Today
  • What to do in Houston Any Day
    • Free Things to Do
    • Houston Mural Map
    • Houston Field Trips
    • Farms and Safaris
    • Houston Parks
  • Restaurants
  • Family Travel
    • Family Travel from Houston
  • Resources
    • Summer Camps
    • Party Venues
    • Applying to HoustonISD Magnet Schools
    • Find a Preschool
    • Find a Doctor
    • Moving to Houston
  • Connect with Us
    • About Jill
    • Sign Up for the Newsletter
    • Contact Jill at JillBJarvis.com
    • Work with Us

Martina the Beautiful Cockroach by Carmen Agra Deedy

by Felicia Leave a Comment

Today’s review is of Martina the Beautiful Cockroach: A Cuban Folktale by Carmen Agra Deedy, illustrated by Michael Austin.

One of my friends has been raving about this Martina the Beautiful Cockroach, but I have been hesitant to check it out due to my extreme cockroach phobia. I have a horrible and LEGITIMATE fear that one evening I will be outside, sitting on the patio, and a tree roach will fly into my mouth.

When I finally overcame my fear, and checked out the book from our local library. I am so glad that I did! My family had never heard of this wonderful Cuban folktale, but we certainly did fall in love with this variation.

All About Martina the Beautiful Cockroach:

I’ll admit, I had stereotypes and preconceived notions about cockroaches and who they should marry, but this book proved me wrong. Martina is truly a beautiful cockroach and a rooster and a lizard are among some of the animals that come to court her in this book.

Martina’s Cuban grandmother gives her some sage advice while some of the other Cucarachas in the family just tried to make her even more attractive to entice a mate.

Even though her grandmother gives ‘un consejo increíble’, shocking advice, Martina decides to exercise her grandmother’s unorthodox suggestion called ‘The Coffee Test’.

Martina the Beautiful Cockroach discovers that her Abuela knew what she was talking about. She dismisses potential mates, who were sheep in wolf’s clothing, within the first few minutes of meeting them. Soon, Martina finds her perfect match. Surprise, surprise! He has a Cuban grandmother as well!

This book is super delightful and with having two girls, I plan on adding this to our own library very soon! Every girl and woman should use ‘The Coffee Test’ when looking for the one while dating and even though this book is light-hearted and very sweet, there is a little bit of truth to it!

Martina the Beautiful Cockroach: A Cuban Folktale is a delightful and well written book! I can’t wait to bring more Carmen Deedy books to read at home!

Go HERE to get the book on Amazon.

Martina the Beautiful Cockroach

Filed Under: All, Blog Archives, Books for Kids January 2, 2014

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

jill-jarvis-bigkidsmallcity-circle-300 Welcome!  JillBJarvis.com is the go-to blog for things to do in Houston with kids!  It is upbeat and dedicated to making our big city feel small.   START HERE!    

On this website you will find a full list of Houston weekly events, things to do around the city, travel ideas and resources for parents.

I know just what it’s like to be overwhelmed by work, life and family. I spent a lot of years traveling for work, missing big milestones for my kids and feeling bad about everything.

I started this website to make a list of all the events happening around Houston and then pick one to enjoy with my kids. And instead of thinking of all the things I was missing, I started to enjoy the things we were doing together.

If you are a parent that is feeling overwhelmed by all the things you could be doing in Houston… please just use our weekly lists and daily posts as suggestions. Pick one thing to do with your family and intentionally ignore the rest!

As Seen On:


Go HERE for more media appearances!

  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosure Policy
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2021 · News Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in