Material appropriate for primary age groups
Three Puerto Rican stories include the title story, which represents the land’s indigenous Tainos; the tale of la Guinea, which is rooted in the nation’s African culture; and la Mula’s tale, a story of Spanish origin.
Shunned by superstitious townspeople who are suspicious of her healing gifts, Old Letivia, a wisewoman who lives on the rainforest island of Borinquen, journeys into the forest with her two friends and encounters dangerous tests of her courage.
A Taino Indian legend about a young boy and his search for the healing caimoni tree.
Shunned by superstitious townspeople who are suspicious of her healing gifts, Old Letivia, a wisewoman who lives on the rainforest island of Borinquen, journeys into the forest with her two friends and encounters dangerous tests of her courage.
Rooster, en route to his uncle’s wedding, struggles with the dilemma of whether he should risk of getting dirty in order to obtain a kernel of corn. His hunger overcomes his better judgment and, of course, he winds up “. . . with a beak full of mud.” This leads into a cumulative tale that will be familiar to anyone who knows “The Old Woman and Her Pig” or any number of its variants. In this case, his quest to get clean is nicely circular: the sun, just coming up as the book begins, is the one who agrees to break the chain of refusal, to repay the rooster for greeting him each morning.
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El solo nombre Coquí evoca la dulce melodía de la ranita que tiene su hábitat en Puerto Rico. Libro hermosamente ilustrado que nos trae el canto nocturno del coquí y la melodía de reinitas, zorzales, gorriones, y ruiseñores, además del batir de alas de mariposas, acrobacias de lagartijos, un arcoiris, una rana con zapatos, un caballito de trapo y unos maizales que, en la imaginación de la autora, se convierten en niñitas con cabellos color de azafrán. Un desfile de ricas imágenes como sólo ésta sabe traer. Libro para enseñar a los pequeños y a los no tan pequeños el amor por la naturaleza y el vivir en armonía con ésta.
Description in Spanish: Es el cumpleaños del San Pedrito y todos en el bosque se ponen de acuerdo para organizarle una fiesta. La alegría se siente en todas las ramas de los árboles; hay música y comida. Pero llega el guaraguao y trata de arruinarlo todo. Sin embargo, la fiesta sigue porque el valiente pitirre le hace frente a este imponente pájaro y logra salvar la velada.
Carmen Agra Deedy delivers this retelling of the Cuban folkltale. Martina the beautiful cockroach doesn’t know coffee beans about love and marriage. That’s where her Cuban family comes in. While some of the Cucarachas offer her gifts to make her more attractive, only Abuela, her grandmother, gives her really useful advice.
A retelling of the folktale about the criollo cockroach who has many suitors but choses the gentlemanly mouse unaware of his weakness for food. At dinnertime during their first day of marriage, he cannot wait for the meal to be served and jumps into the boiling pot, subsequently dying.
In Puerto Rico, a little boy and his village experience the drama and destruction of a hurricane Sergio lives in San Juan, Puerto Rico. San Juan is usually sunny and peaceful, but one day the sky grows dark and the ocean gets choppy. A hurricane is coming, and Sergio and his family must prepare for the storm. Through the experiences of one little boy, readers will learn about hurricanes and the damage they can do.