The Capybaras
THE CAPYBARAS
ALFREDO SODERGUIT, GREYSTONE KIDS, 2021
The hens have a happy life, uncomplicated and straightforward. One day, a family of capybaras show up, escaping hunters in the wetlands. The chickens immediately declare the capybaras: “Too Hairy! Too Wet! And Too Big!” Despite these objections, they allow the newcomers to stay—and discover that welcoming someone into the community can have unexpected benefits. Spare text and simple pen and ink illustrations with a restrained palette allow the many layers of the story to shine through.
Discussion questions
Why do the capybaras come to the chicken coop?
Why do the hens decide there’s no room for the capybaras?
What happens to make the hens change their minds about the capybaras?
What do you think will happen next, after the last picture in the story?
Vocabulary
Capybara: (noun)
a South American mammal that resembles a giant long-legged guinea pig. It lives in groups near water and is the largest living rodent.Agreeable: (adjective)
Enjoyable and pleasant.
“That was a safe, agreeable place.”
The chickens thought their home was safe and pleasant to live in.
Gratitude: (noun)
The quality of being thankful for something.Refuge: (noun)
Something that provides a safe place or shelter for someone who is escaping danger or trouble.
“The capybaras expressed their gratitude for being given refuge and got ready to leave.”
The capybaras were thankful to the chickens for giving them a safe place to stay.
Video content
Capybaras love chickens! This site has pet capybaras that interact with chickens and several videos: https://petcapybara.com/2020/03/25/capybaras-love-chickens/
Two capybaras in a zoo in Japan call to each other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0G_CfAKJY0&t=0s
Publisher content
Book site from Greystone Books - https://greystonebooks.com/products/the-capybaras
Activities
Learn about the refugee / immigrant experience. Start with this Teaching Guide from UNHCR (United Nations Refugee Agency) https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/618bc1d64. Explore books like I’m New Here, The Day You Begin, and Lubna and Pebble.
Paint with one pop of color. The illustrations in this book are in pencil with only small highlights of red, orange, and brown. Create a picture where you use pencil and a small amount of a color to make different parts pop out. Explore how the capybaras look like the reeds and grasses surrounding the water and the chickens look just like their chicken coop in the book.
Write about the further adventures of the capybaras and chickens. Create a play of your ideas and act it out.
Alfredo Soderguit
Author
https://www.ekare.com/english/autor/alfredo-soderguit/
From the book jacket: Alfredo Soderguit began drawing cars when he was three. By the time he was four, he had fooled his teacher into thinking he could read because he could narrate a book by looking at the pictures. He is now an award-winning illustrator with over forty books published throughout Latin America, Spain, France, and Italy. The Capybaras is the second book he has written. He also makes animated films with Palermo Studio, a collective, which he founded with other illustrators and animators. He created Anina, a prize-winning animated film seen in fifteen languages, available on HBO and YouTube in English and Spanish. (Trailer for Anina, in Spanish with subtitles, https://video.link/w/uDwzd )
Companion books
CAPYBARA IS FRIENDS
WITH EVERYONE
Maddie Frost
I AM A CAPYBARA
Michela Fabbri
WHAT IS A REFUGEE?
Elise Gavel