by: Carmen Lomas Garza
This beautifully written book is very informative and full of important cultural traditions. Carmen Lomas Garza grew up in Kingsville, Texas, in a Hispanic household and community. Each page includes one tradition she remembers from her youth. The book is written in English but has a translation in spanish for each section. The spanish translation creates for a sense of openness for the Hispanic community. This story places Spanish culture in the limelight, which teaches children to appreciate all cultures. The second grade Social Studies TEK about culture fits perfectly here by understanding the importance of family and community believes, customs, language, and traditions.
Here is a short snippet of her work:
“This is my grandfather, Antonio Lomas. He’s shaving off the thorns from freshly-cut cactus pads, called nopalitos. My sister Margie is watching him work. Napolitas are called “the food of last resort,” because back when there were no refrigerators and your winter food supply would run out, you knew you could eat the cactus pads through the last days of winter and the early days of spring. My grandmother would boil the nopalitos in salt water, cut them up, and stir-fry them with chile and eggs for breakfast” (page 2).
“This is a Saturday night at El Jardin, a neighborhood restaurant in my home town. It’s the summer, so warm that you can dance outside. A conjunto band is playing–drums, accordion, guitar. and bass. This is the music I grew up with. Everybody’s dancing in a big circle: the young couples, the older couples, and the old folks dancing with the teenagers or children. Even babies get to dance. I learned to dance from my father and grandfather. This is where my love of dance started. To me, dance means fiesta, celebration. You have the music, the beautiful clothes, and all the family members dancing together. It’s like heaven. It is heaven” (page 13).
