Gathering the Sun: An Alphabet in Spanish and English

Book Review:

Gathering the Sun: An Alphabet in Spanish and English by Alma Flor Ada is a beautiful and honorable alphabetical book about Mexican farm workers. Using all twenty-eight letters of the Spanish alphabet as a template on each page, Alma Flor Ada has written a special poem in Spanish for each. Each poem is written in honor of the history, culture, families, heritage, and harvest of Mexican farm workers. Rosa Zubizarreta, Alma's daughter, has translated each of the poems into English as well. Simón Silva has brought this book to life with his large glossy illustrations. His wide uses of red and orange colors indicate the backbreaking work under the heat of the scorching sun. With every stroke and use of color, Silva uses a great amount of detail in his artwork. When I read this book to a group of second graders, they absolutely loved it just as much as I did.

 

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