Uncle Monarch and the Day of the Dead

By Yoo Kyung Sung | Published: December 1, 2008

When the monarch butterflies return to the Mexican countryside where Lupita lives, she knows that it means that Da de Muertos, the Day of the Dead, is near. She and her favorite uncle watch the butterflies as they flutter in the trees. When a butterfly lands on Lupitas hand, her uncle reminds her that she should never capture or hurt a monarch because they are believed to be the souls of the departed.

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One Comment

  1. Robin Garlock
    Posted October 31, 2011 at 2:31 pm | Permalink

    In Uncle Monarch, Lupita learns how to prepare for the Day of the Dead from her uncle, Tio Urbano. He tells her how the souls of departed loves ones live on in the butterflies. As the preparations continue, Tio Urbano becomes sicker and sicker, until finally, he passes away. Lupita is very sad, but when she sees a monarch butterfly at Tio Urbano’s graveside, it reminds her that her uncle and the love they shared will never really be gone.
    There is a glossary of terms in the back of this book, which I found very helpful when reading it to my second grade students. I do not have any Hispanic students in my classroom, so using the glossary helped build some background knowledge to help in understanding this story. My students could relate to losing a loved one, but they had a difficult time understanding the nuances of the story due to a lack of adequate prior knowledge.

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