Plot Summary
Blueberries, chile peppers, chocolate, corn, cranberries, papayas, peanuts, pecans, pineapples, potatoes, prickly pear cactus, pumpkins, tomatoes, and vanilla are fourteen foods described as indigenous to the Americas. A brief history of each food is given in addition to a haiku, which is a seventeen-syllable poem of Japanese origin.
Critical Analysis
Did you know that blueberries boiled in milk were once used to make gray paint? Did you know that papayas can grow as big as twenty pounds? Did you know that the pods of the tropical cacao tree, from which chocolate is made, were once used as money? Mora describes the fourteen foods listed in the summary above with a short history of the origin of each one and a very creative and entertaining haiku as well.
The haiku in Mora's book use the structure and rhythm of the English format of three lines with five, seven, and five syllables respectively. The lines rarely rhyme as in "laughs when tears fill his eyes, sighs." Throughout Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué Rico!: America’s Sproutings, each haiku continues its steady beat of 5-7-5. Alliteration is used in "leaves sprout silky-snug houses" and "squirts seedy, juicy splatter." The lines are filled with imagery. The reader can see the bowl of blueberries which is "heaped with summer." Many more examples could be shown if not already at the limit of four lines of poetry. Mora creatively describes the food in such a way to cause each haiku to bring a smile to the reader. How a person's mouth can be on fire and thinking happy thoughts at the same time is just amazing!
The cultural markers include words such as "la cocina," "los dulces," "la luna," and "que rico." These words are given at the beginning of the book with the English translations. The different variations of the word "chile" (Spanish), "chili" (English), and "chilli" (Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs) are explained. The word "chocolate" comes from the Nahuatl word "xocolatl." "Maize," "teosinte,"
"piña," "papas," "nopales," and "tunas" are other Latino words mixed throughout the history and origin of Mora's fourteen highlighted foods.
The illustrations by Rafael López are bold and colorful. Non-human characters such as the sun, the moon, a peanut butter sandwich, and a pineapple are brightly personified. The skin tones of his human characters vary from a dusky-pink hue to a very dark brown. Most of the illustrations depict people with black hair; however, there is one red head, one older person with white hair, and a smattering of brunettes. Apart from one curly-haired boy, the characters have straight hair. The males have their hair cut above their ears and collar. The females have long hair which is either free-flowing, braided, in pigtails, or covered with a mantilla. The only mode of transportation pictured is an old farm truck. Most of the illustrations are set in the countryside with fruit-producing trees or rows of vegetables in the background. Except for the astonished look of fright on the face of the girl watching her father breathe chile fire, all of the characters are happy and smiling. Families are seen enjoying each other's company.
Readers can appreciate the cultural history and origin Mora describes in Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué Rico!: America’s Sproutings. The use of haiku also allows them to experience a form of poetry which may not be as familiar to them as other forms of verse. The bond of family is quite apparent and the idea of happiness, in spite of humble surroundings, is refreshing. This book is sure to bring a smile to the faces of readers young and old alike.
The illustrations by Rafael López are bold and colorful. Non-human characters such as the sun, the moon, a peanut butter sandwich, and a pineapple are brightly personified. The skin tones of his human characters vary from a dusky-pink hue to a very dark brown. Most of the illustrations depict people with black hair; however, there is one red head, one older person with white hair, and a smattering of brunettes. Apart from one curly-haired boy, the characters have straight hair. The males have their hair cut above their ears and collar. The females have long hair which is either free-flowing, braided, in pigtails, or covered with a mantilla. The only mode of transportation pictured is an old farm truck. Most of the illustrations are set in the countryside with fruit-producing trees or rows of vegetables in the background. Except for the astonished look of fright on the face of the girl watching her father breathe chile fire, all of the characters are happy and smiling. Families are seen enjoying each other's company.
Readers can appreciate the cultural history and origin Mora describes in Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué Rico!: America’s Sproutings. The use of haiku also allows them to experience a form of poetry which may not be as familiar to them as other forms of verse. The bond of family is quite apparent and the idea of happiness, in spite of humble surroundings, is refreshing. This book is sure to bring a smile to the faces of readers young and old alike.
Awards and Honors
Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, 2008 Winner United
States
Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, 2008 Winner United
States
Best Children's Book of the Year, 2008 Bank Street College of Education
Notable Children's Books, 2008 ALSC American Library Association
Texas Bluebonnet Nominee, 2009-2010
Review ExcerptsNotable Children's Books, 2008 ALSC American Library Association
Texas Bluebonnet Nominee, 2009-2010
“In this feast of flavors, 14
haiku celebrate the origins of agriculture indigenous to the Americas. Vivid art reminiscent of the Mexican
muralists Rivera and Orozco illustrate each double-page spread.” ~ Lolly
Gepson, Booklist, April 15, 2014
“Haiku seems a strange form for an American-centered collection, but Mora
works the vivid imagery in lyrics that are pretty lip-smacking in their own
sonorous right (the tomato ‘squirts seedy, juicy splatter’), making them tasty
candidates for reading aloud.” ~ Deborah
Stevenson, Bulletin of the Center for
Children’s Books, December 2007
“This concept
book serves as a delicious introduction to 14 types of food, all of which have
their origins in the Americas. The art conveys an infectious sense of fun, as
smiling suns and moons beam down upon happy children and animals, along with a
trumpet-wielding peanut-butter sandwich and a dancing pineapple.” ~ Marilyn Taniguchi, School Library Journal, 2010
Other Books Written by Pat Mora
Tomás and the Library Lady
Dizzy in Your
Eyes: Poems about Love
A Library for Juana: The World of Sor Juana Inaes
Visit her website for more information: www.patmora.com/
Book Connections
Laughing Tomatoes and Other Spring Poems=Jitomates Risueanos y Otros
Poemas de Primavera: Poems by Francisco X. Alarcaon
Gathering the Sun: An A B C in Spanish and English by Alma Flor Ada
Red Hot Salsa Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States by
Lori Marie Carlson
Connection Activities
A Library for Juana: The World of Sor Juana Inaes
Visit her website for more information: www.patmora.com/
Book Connections
Laughing Tomatoes and Other Spring Poems=Jitomates Risueanos y Otros
Poemas de Primavera: Poems by Francisco X. Alarcaon
Gathering the Sun: An A B C in Spanish and English by Alma Flor Ada
Red Hot Salsa Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States by
Lori Marie Carlson
Connection Activities
- Invite students to create an art piece (watercolor, collage, etc.) incorporating the 14 foods in the book.
- Invite students make a list of 14 of their favorite foods and write a haiku about one.
I love haiku!!! And the information presented through this poetry sounds very interesting!! May buy this as a Christmas gift! Thanks for the marvelous review.
ReplyDeleteAnother great review, Rebecca! All the food you described sounds so good! "Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué Rico!: America’s Sproutings" sounds like a very enjoyable book.
ReplyDelete