Americas

Materials from the Americas

The Present Tense of Prinny Murphy

An alcoholic mother, a distracted father, a best friend who spends all his time with his new “girlfriend,” and three relentless schoolyard bullies: Prinny Murphy’s past, present, and future certainly are “tense.” Adding to her misery, she still can’t read well enough to escape from remedial lessons with the dour Mrs. Dooks. But when a kindly substitute teacher introduces her to LaVaughn’s inner-city world in the free verse novel, Make Lemonade, Prinny discovers that life can be full of possibilities – and poetry.  

Ka-Hala-O-Puna, Ka U’i O Manoa: The Beauty Of Manoa

According to an ancient Hawiian legend, Kahalaopuna was the beautiful girl of the rainbow from the famed Valley of Manoa on O’ahu. She was betrothed to marry a chief named Kauhi, whose heart was turned by lies. As the story unfolds, we come to understand two Hawaiian truths, that of pono, righteousness, and aloha, mercy.

Hawaiian Legends Of Dreams

Moe‘uhane, the Hawaiian word for dream, means “soul sleep.” While sleeping, Hawaiians of old believed they communicated with ‘aumakua, their ancestral guardians, and this important relationship was sustained through dreaming. In this companion volume to her award-winning Hawaiian Legends of the Guardian Spirits, artist Caren Loebel-Fried retells and illuminates nine dream stories from Hawai‘i’s past.

Lehua: A Legend of Old Hawaii

This legend tells of a young girl’s journey to dispel a curse cast upon her for saving the life of a pig. Lehua, the heroine of the story, and ‘Ehu, the pig, travel far distances to solve a riddle that can break the curse. Includes glossary of Hawaiian terms.

The Story Of Colors / La Historia De Los Colores: A Bilingual Folktale From The Jungles Of Chiapas

When the NEA -rescinded funding for The Story of Colors, the news hit the cover of the New York Times and made the book an instant bestseller. But far from being subversive, this beautifully illustrated folktale teaches us all about the value of diversity. Old man Antonio tells how a long time ago the world was just black and white and gray. This bored the gods, so they went looking for bright colors and they found them in the most peculiar places!

No one exactly knows who -Subcomandante Marcos is, but since New Year’s Day 1994, when the Zapatistas declared war on the Mexican government, he has become a post-modern revolutionary hero.

How Maui Slowed The Sun (Kolowalu Book)

Recounts how Maui uses his magical powers to slow the path of the sun across the sky, thus allowing crops more time to grow, fishermen more time to fish, and children more time to play.

La Sirena Y El Pescador

La sirena y el pescador is a traditional folktale of the Rio Balsas region of Mexico, written in the Nahuatl language of San Agustín Oapan, Guerrero and accompanied by a Spanish translation. It tells the story of a young boy who must escape from his family after “Aalamatsin”, the mermaid and mother of all fish, wants the boy as a sacrifice in exchange for the release and pardon of his father, who betrayed his own wife and exploited the inhabitants of the river by overfishing it.