El Silbón de Venezuela

by Craig Klein Dexemple

Introducing the people and culture of Venezuela, El Silbón (The Whistler) is an intriguing novelette that first-year Spanish students can easily grasp. Written in the present tense, the book is based on a list of 650-plus nouns, verbs, adjectives, and common phrases covered in most beginning Spanish courses. As they read and discuss the book in class, students will strengthen their acquisition of the target language while being carried away to a world beyond their experience. A hair-raising thriller, El Silbón centers on Henry, a boy from small-town Minnesota with a charming fascination with all things cowboy. Unable to realize his dream of becoming a cowboy, Henry is despondent until he meets Ricardo, a schoolmate from the Venezuelan llanos—a great grassy plain extending from Venezuela and Colombia. Invited to visit Ricardo’s home in the llanos, Henry encounters a strange world with different foods like plantain bananas; different animals like capibaras, the world’s largest rodent; and the llaneros, the tough, hardy cowboys of the Venezuelan plains. But Henry’s innocent encounter with the exotic ends one night when he sees El Silbón, a tall, gaunt creature and one of the most feared ghosts in Venezuelan folklore.

Genres: Spanish Literature

64 pages, Paperback

Published September 27, 2015

Reviews

[Timothy Koch · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story was good and fun. My only objection to this book was I had to look up a lot of words. Now, that’s on me, but many of the words I had to look up were not in the back of the book, so it made reading it difficult . . . maybe more difficult than it was worth.

[Preslie King]

If I had to suffer through this book for Spanish I’m counting it on here

[Kristina Mateo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story. Very well written besides one typo. The story was interesting and I liked how it is an actual myth/forlore that can be research further. I wouldn't say this was a book for beginners though. I think the man not wearing pants could be taken out of the story or modified. I laughed at the part when Henry was tired in the car ride home but he wasn't able to sleep because mother was listening to music loudly. Relatable for my kids :).

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I quite liked this one - no big plot holes, and centered on an authentic legend. Makes me want to figure out how to teach Spanish through folktales more.

[Jane De vries · Rating 3 out of 5]

Muy divertido! Es una novela por los estudiantes en mi escuela pero fue una oportunidad para mi también!

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fine for beginner.

[Chase Safris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh.