Day of the Dead
*"The Best Children's Books of the Year"
Bank Street College of Education*
“This lovely picture book effectively blends a poignant story about
losing a beloved relative with a lucid description of Día de Muertos, a
Mexican celebration observed during the first two days of November in which
families honor and remember deceased loved ones….
Lovely, bright-hued illustrations depict fluttering butterflies in
pastoral landscapes, a marketplace filled with colorful wares, a poignant
scene with Lupita by the bedside of her comatose uncle, and families
gathered together in a cheerfully decorated graveyard.”
-School Library Journal
a soft, gently told intergenerational story of the annual arrival of Monarch butterflies to the Mexican countryside. After the first reading you realize it is so much more. There is a sharing of Dia de Muertos, the Day of the Dead, which shows how families prepare for and celebrate these two days in November. The story allows us to celebrate the love and memory of extended family. A quality story to share on this level of understanding is always a welcome addition to a book collection… a great story to use in a science study of life cycles: in this case, butterflies, where they end their journey and what happens when they get there.
--Library Media Connection
Multicultural customs and monarch butterflies are favorite
subjects in classrooms, and this offering nicely combines the two.
----Kirkus Reviews
