BOOKS

multicultural middle grade fiction
Starfields
Living in the Mayan jungle, Rosalba knows nothing about the 2012 prophesy of the end of the world. Then sophisticated Alicia comes from Mexico City to tell her all about it...
Take Me With You
Susana and Pina grow up in an Italian orphanage Will either find a parent?
The Gold-Threaded Dress (Candlewick 2002)
Oy, a Thai immigrant, has to decide what she will give up to fit in.
Mama Had to Work on Christmas (Viking 2003)
Gloria wakes up on Christmas morning to find that Mama is going to work instead of taking her to Nana's house in Mexico to celebrate.
Silk Umbrellas (Candlewick 2004)
Will Noi be sent to the factory to work, or can she learn to paint umbrellas? Will a young artist be able to pursue her gift?
Moon Runner (Candlewick 2005)
What if your best friend is also your biggest rival?
The Quail Club (Candlewick 2006)
In this sequel to The Gold-Threaded Dress, Oy must choose between friendship and her cultural identity.
The Jade Dragon (Candlewick 2006)
Why won't the new Chinese girl be Ginny's friend?
When Heaven Fell (Candlewick 2007)
Binh's rich Ameican aunt is coming to her Vietnamese village.
Bird Springs (Viking 2007)
Gregory has to leave the Navajo reservation for the big city of Tucson.
The Buddha's Diamonds (Candlewick 2008)
Overnight, Tinh's Vietnamese village is destroyed by a cyclone.
Sahwira: An African Friendship (Candlewick 2009)
Can a white boy and an African boy keep their friendship in a changing world?

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HOW I GOT MY IDEA FOR MAMA HAD TO WORK ON CHRISTMAS

One Christmas, my mother took me and my family to a lovely buffet in a fancy hotel. The food was so delicious I didn't know what to eat first! Then I noticed the waiters and bus boys, the women in the bathroom handing us towels. I felt bad for them because they had to work on a holiday. Then I began to imagine what it was like for children to have a parent working. After dinner, we took a boat ride across the bay. As I rode, I made up the story of Gloria.

The cover art was done by Robert Casilla. This is exactly how I imagined Mama and Gloria would look!
IDEAS FOR CLASSROOM DISCUSSION:

*Hispanic culture
*different cultural holiday traditions
*the meaning of love
*how it feels to be disappointed