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If You Were Me and Lived in… cultural series #22

If you were me and lived in... Cuba: A Child's Introduction to Cultures Around the World

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Join Carole P. Roman when she visits the exciting island of Cuba in the newest book of her informative series. Learn about the varied customs and cultures. Travel to the Caribbean to discover what you would eat and do for fun. See the country through the eyes of a youngster like you and understand what life is like in this exciting place. Don't forget to look at the other books in the series so that you can be an armchair world traveler.

34 pages, Paperback

First published June 6, 2017

2 people are currently reading
22 people want to read

About the author

Carole P. Roman

69 books2,201 followers
Carole P. Roman is the award-winning author of over fifty children's books. Whether it's pirates, princesses, or discovering the world around us, her books have enchanted educators, parents, and her diverse audience of children. She hosts a blog radio program called Indie Authors Roundtable and is one of the founders of the magazine, Indie Author's Monthly. She's been interviewed twice by Forbes Magazine. Carole has co-authored two self-help books. Navigating Indieworld: A Beginners Guide to Self-Publishing and Marketing with Julie A. Gerber, and Marketing Indieworld with both Julie A. Gerber and Angela Hausman. She published Mindfulness for Kids with J. Robin Albertson-Wren and a new joke book called The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids: 800+ Jokes!
She writes adult fiction under the name Brit Lunden and is currently helping to create an anthology with her mythical town of Bulwark, Georgia with a group of indie authors. She lives on Long Island near her children and grandchildren.

Her series includes:
Captain No Beard
If You Were Me and Lived in- Cultural
If You Were Me and Lived in- Historical
Nursery series
Oh Susannah- Early Reader and coloring book
Mindfulness for Kids with co-author J. Robin Albertson-Wren
The Big Book of Silly Jokes for Kids; 800 plus Jokes!
Navigating Indieworld- with co-author Julie A. Gerber
Marketing Indieworld- with co-authors Angela Hausman and Julie A. Gerber
Adult Fiction under the pen name Brit Lunden
Bulwark
The Knowing- A Bulwark Anthology

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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
Profile Image for N.N. Heaven.
Author 6 books2,120 followers
August 3, 2017
Superb addition to a great series. Factually accurate, fun and flows well. Amazing illustrations that bring the story to life.



Read with book with your child and you will both be transported into life in Cuba. A terrific learning tool that is fun and entertaining!



Disclaimer: I received a paperback copy from the author in the hopes I’d review it.



My Rating: 5 stars



This review first appeared: https://princessofthelight.wordpress.com
Profile Image for Sarah.
Author 225 books1,477 followers
July 24, 2017
Loved this book. We learned so much reading this book. Just like with every book in this series. Roman's book are gift to young and old readers.
Profile Image for Jalynn Patterson.
2,216 reviews37 followers
August 8, 2017
About the Book:

Join Carole P. Roman when she visits the exciting island of Cuba in the newest book of her informative series. Learn about the varied customs and cultures. Travel to the Caribbean to discover what you would eat and do for fun. See the country through the eyes of a youngster like you and understand what life is like in this exciting place.

Don't forget to look at the other books in the series so that you can be an armchair world traveler.



My Review:

If you have never heard of the If You Were Me and Lived In... series you are really missing out. The famous Carole P. Roman takes children on a virtual field trip to different countries and cultures and shows them many fun and interesting things.


Cuba is rich in history, culture, and food so they offer a tourist an exciting adventure. Baseball is the sport of choice there. A very famous carnival Santiago De Cuba is a week-long festival that consists of dancing, singing, and music. It is an exciting time for the people there and they invite all walks of life to join them.


Cuba is a fun colorful place that has lots to offer!


**Disclosure** This book was sent to me free of charge for my honest review from the author. All opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Gayle Pace.
1,110 reviews22 followers
July 5, 2017
MY THOUGHTS
As with other books by Ms Roman, she puts pronunciation of harder words in parenthesis which helps the reader learn new words. Also at the back of her books she has a Glossary with definitions of certain words. The book starts with a picture of how Cuba looks along with the capital, Havana. This isn't just for children but for adults to do some armchair traveling also. I learn something every time I read one of her books. I didn't know, for instance, that Cuba is the biggest island in the Caribbean and the second most populated. SO many interesting facts about rivers, harbors, the capital, names that your parents may have called their children. You get to know the foods they eat that may be different than ours. I was very interested in the Castillo del Morro. A 17th century fort. It had been started in 1587 but took a long time to finish. It was a protector from the pirates and also a prison. So many interesting facts that Ms. Roman puts in her books. They are fun to read with lots of colorful illustrations and have lessons that can be learned throughout. It's fun to be an armchair traveler, going from country to country and learning about their way of doing things, the food, the clothing, the buildings and their way of life. As always a wonderful book to add to the collection of her other books.

I received a copy of this book from the author, Carole P. Roman and voluntarily decided to review it.

Profile Image for Vera Godley.
1,990 reviews57 followers
July 14, 2017
The author has written extensively about countries around the globe introducing children to cultures that vary and yet prove to be somewhat similar. Just what is it like to be a child living in..... Cuba?

We explore the daily life, food, and special events of a couple of kids living in Cuba. It seems that the family in the story eats a lot of rice dishes. Of course their name for rice is different from "rice" and it seems they combine it with meats and vegetables. The island's history is touched upon and entices the reader to delve into the settlement of the Spaniards on this little island so far away from Spain.

The glossary in the back of the book is helpful with word or phrase meanings and proncunciation.

Another interesting introduction to world cultures by Carole P. Roman.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from the author to facilitate a review. Opinions are my own and freely given. I am hosting a #giveaway on my blog that ends 8/6 - come over and enter to try and win a copy. http://chatwithvera.blogspot.com/2017...
Profile Image for Jennifer Lara.
255 reviews2 followers
July 21, 2017
If you were me and lived in…Cuba takes the reader on a tour of the island nation of Cuba. The reader is taken through the capital and largest city of Havana. There is shopping with Abuela and visiting Castillo del Morro, a 17th century Spanish fort. There is a visit to Cayo Coco, a famous beach in Cuba. It is rumored that Ernest Hemingway used it in many of his novels. There is a look into special foods for celebrations in Cuba as well as the country’s favorite sport, baseball. If you were me and lived in…Cuba is a great addition to this children’s educational series. It has become a favorite of mine and I can’t wait for my daughter to learn about Cuba and all the other countries featured in this series. I highly recommend If you were me and lived in…Cuba for any family and classroom library!


If you were me and lived in…Cuba is available in paperback and eBook
Profile Image for Autumn.
2,341 reviews47 followers
July 26, 2017
http://kachildrensbookreviews.blogspo...

We received this book to give an honest review.
Want to know what would it would be like to live in Cuba? Well jump right on into this book and learn a bit about this Caribbean culture.
I thought a cool fact was that parents did exercises with their kids starting when they were 45 days old. I didn't know that about the Cubans which is really neat. One thing a lot of people may not know is that Cuba is just not made up of Spanish people there is a lot of different cultures that live in Cuba and it is so diverse.
K and I really enjoy reading this series because well we feel as though we learn a little bit more on the country we are reading about.
Profile Image for M.
48 reviews3 followers
September 25, 2017
Cute and light book, for both kids and adults. The pictures remind me of Havana. I recommend it.
Profile Image for Rocio Monroy.
Author 12 books47 followers
October 29, 2017
I like how the author describes Cuba. She doesn’t only talk about its famous places but also about its people. The way mother and father interact with their kids and what they like to eat and do.
Profile Image for Reader Views.
4,580 reviews319 followers
December 31, 2017
Reviewed by Russ (age 5) for Reader Views Kids (12/17)

“If You Were Me and Lived in…Cuba” by Carole P. Roman is about studying the world and how to make a difference when you study the world. The book had people speaking Spanish, which was good because Spanish is spoken in Cuba. It tells the basics of what it is like to live in Havana.

I really liked that it had Spanish words in it and it was talking about another nation that isn’t Tennessee, where I live. There isn’t anything I did not like about the book.

I think I like the art for the most part. The earth looked good, but I didn’t like how the people on the cover were drawn. I liked how they were drawn on the inside. I liked the real life people in the picture of the fort.

I recommend “If You Were Me and Lived in…Cuba” by Carole P. Roman to other kids because they might like it and learn about Cuba.

Parent’s Note

Russ seemed to enjoy this book more than I thought he would. When we were talking through some of the sections (especially the food section), both Russ and my 8 year-old daughter Willow were interested in hearing about the Spanish names for each of the food items. This is something I like about this book series: the use of actual terms from that location, along with a pronunciation guide showing how to pronounce them. I also like that it gives a good, simple introduction to an area, including maps, key areas, family members, food, and festivals. I also learned some cool things about Cuba that I didn’t know before; however, it does leave out any sense of recent history. It makes a great guide to read every so often and to ask questions so that my kids can be “armchair world travelers” and hopefully instill an actual love of the world (and not just our home).
129 reviews1 follower
July 7, 2017
This review is meant for parents, teachers, and other people that work with children to read.

"If You Were Me and Lived in...Cuba" is another great addition to the A Child's Introduction to Culture Around the World series! It follows the format of the other books in the series. In the introduction a Cuban-looking boy and girl point to where Cuba is on the globe. It then goes on to talk about the Republic of Cuba and the capital of Cuba. Popular Cuban boys and girls names are given as well as what you would call your mom, dad, and grandmother if you lived in Cuba. It also explains popular foods, tourist attractions, a Cuban festival, sports, what money and school is called in Cuba. There is also a glossary in the back of the book defining Cuban (Spanish) words used in the story into English.

Not only will children learn a lot from the information in this book but adults can too! It was interesting to learn that Havana, the capital of Cuba was founded by Spanish explorers and what an archipelago is. I also learned that participating in sporting events in Cuba is a very important part of life there.

As with the rest of the books in this series, children should easily follow it since it follows the format of the other books. The information learned from this book can be written in a comparison chart with information from the other books in the series to compare the differences of different cultures in different countries in the world!

I received this book free for the purpose of reviewing it.
Profile Image for Stacie.
1,894 reviews119 followers
October 21, 2017
This fabulous series of non-fiction books for children has added another interesting country to its series. If you are like me, I seemed to know only negative things about the country of Cuba. There was much to learn in this short introduction to their culture.

I had no idea that Cuba, an island in the Carribean was such a viable country full of business and industry as well as athletics. Baseball and boxing are two of the countries most popular sports. Roman introduces children to what life would be like if they were living in Havana, Cuba. Children will learn about their families, the schools, the food they would eat, the celebrations they would have and how they have fun. By using Spanish words in the book, children feel a bit more immersed in the culture and can guess what the Spanish word means. Then checking the glossary in the back, they can see if they were correct.

Roman has written another book that I recommend you add to your home or school library, She is a talented writer and never disappoints. Homeschool families and teachers would find these books a great asset to their teaching.
Profile Image for Anne Rightler.
1,964 reviews36 followers
June 27, 2017
Award-winning Carole P Roman's series If You Were Me and Lived in...is a wonderful way to introduce children, ages pre-K to 8 years, to cultures of people around the world. Cuba, beautifully illustrated by Kelsea Wierenga and simply written, is sure to capture a child's interest and imagination. A glossary at the back enables children to learn simple words and names of places in Cuba. From going to the market to visiting the Castillo del Morro, a 17th-century fort, from eating bocodillos and plantains to going to Cayo Coco (a beautiful beach) with family, and from celebrating traditions at the weeklong festival at Santago de Cuba to playing baseball with friends, kids will learn about Cuban traditions, foods, and geography. It is well known that books can take an armchair reader (or one sitting on a lap) anywhere and Roman does a fantastic job of taking her readers to Cuba, a place of beauty and age-old customs. Highly recommended for a child's library. I received a complimentary copy of the book from the author. I was not required to write a review and the opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Robert Yokoyama.
227 reviews10 followers
June 29, 2017
I learned a few interesting things about Cuba from this book. I want to thank Carole Roman for introducing me to some aspects of Cuban culture. I would love to try Cuban food especially potatoes stuffed with meat and onions. I would also to try black beans with rice. I am sure this rice dish has many other spices and flavors added to it. I would love to visit a castle called Castillo Del Morro. I have never seen the inside of a castle before, and it would be interesting to explore it. I love the illustration of this castle by Kelsea Wierenga. It looks very majestic with all of the steps and high walls. I would love to play on the beaches in Cuba. I love the colorful illustration of the beach in the book. I love to go to Cuba to see the annual fire festival. I have never seen a festival dedicated to fire before. I am not into the sport of baseball or boxing. However Carole Roman's description of the love that Cuban people have for these sports would motivate me to travel to Cuba to see these sports played live.
Profile Image for Wanda Maynard.
299 reviews22 followers
July 10, 2017
Have you picked it up yet? This amazing, award winning book is out there for your enjoyment. IF YOU WERE ME AND LIVED IN...CUBA, by a wonderful author of children's books, Carole P. Roman, has some fascinating facts about Cuba that I enjoyed reading about, and you will too; along with the colorful art work that children will enjoy looking at as their parents or grandparents, or big sister, big brother, or even a baby-sitter is reading to them or with them.
One of the visitor's sites you might enjoy reading about is the Castillo del Morro that was built in the 17th century. There is also a beautiful beach called, Cayo Coco that can only be reached by airplane or a bridge. How about some tasty dishes to read about? In 1991, Cuba hosted an important sporting event. There is so much more for children and adults to read and learn about in this great book. Amazing read!!
Profile Image for Melanie Adkins.
802 reviews24 followers
December 7, 2017
Winter is here so why don't we take a trip to Cuba? Cuba is an island in the Caribbean. There are so many things to see and do. We can go shopping or explore a real Spanish Fort. We could play at the beach before we go exploring again.

This book is colorful, friendly and exciting. Well written and characters children can relate to. It's the perfect tool for parents. You can use this to "travel" with your children. It will give them a cultural lesson. Ms. Roman's approach to children with this series is the best I've seen. Wonderful books your child will never tire of.

I found no issues.

I gave this one 5 cheers out of 5 because it's a teaching tool (which I love) and it's a fun read. ~Copy of book provided by author and I voluntarily reviewed it.
Profile Image for Sandra Stiles.
Author 1 book81 followers
October 16, 2017
I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

For me, this book was very personal. I was introduced to the Cuban culture when I married my first husband. Reading Carole's book was like going home. The food and celebrations were taught to my children. I am still close to Popi we lost Mami a couple of years ago. She would visit family in Cuba every few years and then tell me all about her trip to her former country. Carole gives the reader a look at the lives and the cultures of the people of Cuba.
Profile Image for Chris Meads.
648 reviews10 followers
July 10, 2017
Another great learning aid from Carole Roman. This tie, it's about Cuba, that island that is south of Florida. Once again it is two children teaching us about where they live, their culture, food ad clothing. Included are common words that children around the world would use. There is a glossary at the end of the book to help with the harder words and pronunciation. A great addition to your library, the school library and even the public library. Keep it going Carole.
Profile Image for Suzanne.
2,244 reviews43 followers
August 14, 2017
The "If You Were Me and Lived in... " series introduces young readers to countries around the world through the eyes of children. The book on Cuba includes descriptions of everyday events like going to the market with your family or using Cuban Convertible Pesos to pay for your shopping. Throughout the book readers learn the Cuban words (in Spanish) for family members and household objects, there are examples of popular foods, and suggestions for favorite boys' and girl's names. In the back is a glossary/pronunciation guide for words such as bocadillo, escuela, and muy caliente. Readers may be impressed with the photo of the Castillo del Morro or the beautiful beach at Cayo Coco. Descriptions of the carnival at Santiago de Cuba and the Fiesta del Fuego may have you wishing to join the fun.

Along with the everyday details of home, school, and pastimes, there are other facts about the country and its history, including the vital role Havana played as a harbor for the Spanish explorers in the New World. Books such as this are great as a first introduction for elementary school students to the various cultures around the world. Teachers and librarians will find it handy to have the entire set on their shelves.

I received a copy from the author for review purposes.
Profile Image for Ruth B.
676 reviews38 followers
July 12, 2017
Ok, so let's go to Cuba. This island in the Caribbean is beautiful not only for its beaches but also its rich History. I enjoyed reading about the adventures we could have in the island.

The book seems quite short but it shows many interesting places and facts about the beautiful Country. As usual great illustrations.

***I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. ***
Profile Image for Bea .
2,033 reviews134 followers
September 15, 2017
Like all the books in this series, it's a superficial look at life in another country, but it has lots of detail and hints at the diverse culture that makes up Cuba. The colors, including page background, were dark which overwhemed the artwork at times. There's an extensive glossary at the back which includes words in both Cuban and American English. The story was moderately interesting.
Profile Image for Penny Minding Mom.
231 reviews1 follower
January 25, 2023
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a review and all opinions are 100% my own.

“If You Were Me And Lived In…CUBA” is another installment in the “If You Were Me And Lived In…” series of books by Carole P. Roman. All the books in this series introduce the reader to cultures around the world.

As an armchair traveller, I love reading these books and exploring new places with my children. This book follows the same format as others in the series but can be read as a stand-alone book. Your little one will explore the culture and customs of Cuba. Your child learns about everyday activities that children around the world participate in like sports, playing with dolls and even going to school.

The author has provided a glossary of terms at the back of the book. Difficult words are in parenthesis within the text. I love this feature as I often stumble over new vocabulary when reading aloud.


I enjoy how the illustrator, Kelsea Wierenga, has used real-world pictures with artistic drawings to bring Cuba to life in the book. The images in the book help the user imagine what life would be like if you lived in Cuba.

I love how each page features a new fact about Cuban culture. Each topic is in manageable pieces for kids to digest. This book would make a wonderful addition to a classroom library.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews

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