A Birthday Basket for Tia

Rating:
Summary: A Special Basket of a Book for Little Ones
Review: In the late Fall of 1992, I read A BIRTHDAY BASKET FOR TIA (Macmillan) by Pat Mora. (I received it as a gift from a special friend and mentor.) I had never read a children's book written by a Mexican American author, so I read it with anticipation.

At the same time, I became angry because I had never read a picture book and much less a young adult novel by a relevant author of my ethnic group. Why hadn't anyone offered such children's books to me when I was a young boy coming of age in Magnolia, the East side barrio of Houston? Nevertheless, I hugged the book and read it again and again in the company of other young(er) Latinas and Latinos in Houston and San Antonio public schools. Who would have thought?

Since then, I have shared the book in English and Spanish, too, with educators and readers. So many readers--of all ages and colors--have met the young girl named Cecilia, the silly cat named Chica, and her loving aunt. An advocate for children, Pat Mora's picture books continue to share the written word and celebrate the narrative of many Latinas and Latinos living in the United States. Muchisimas gracias, Pat Mora.

Rating:
Summary: A Special Basket of a Book for Little Ones
Review: In the late Fall of 1992, I read A BIRTHDAY BASKET FOR TIA (Macmillan) by Pat Mora. (I received it as a gift from a special friend and mentor.) I had never read a children's book written by a Mexican American author, so I read it with anticipation.

At the same time, I became angry because I had never read a picture book and much less a young adult novel by a relevant author of my ethnic group. Why hadn't anyone offered such children's books to me when I was a young boy coming of age in Magnolia, the East side barrio of Houston? Nevertheless, I hugged the book and read it again and again in the company of other young(er) Latinas and Latinos in Houston and San Antonio public schools. Who would have thought?

Since then, I have shared the book in English and Spanish, too, with educators and readers. So many readers--of all ages and colors--have met the young girl named Cecilia, the silly cat named Chica, and her loving aunt. An advocate for children, Pat Mora's picture books continue to share the written word and celebrate the narrative of many Latinas and Latinos living in the United States. Muchisimas gracias, Pat Mora.