La Mariposa and Text Set

I used the book, “La Mariposa” by Francisco Jimenez as part of a book set.  A book set are different books, of different genres and with different levels of difficulty, so that students are provided with choice and presented with varied points of view/information when reading about a certain subject. "La Mariposa" book is a children’s picture book and memoir of the author’s experiences attending school in the U.S for the first time.  He was so excited but, quickly realized that it would be harder than he thought. Francisco did not speak English and the teacher refused him any connection to the language at all.  He recalled how the teacher’s finger would work like a windshield wiper, back and forth, telling him not to speak Spanish. He connected more with the butterfly, drawing pictures, as his escape. This is a good read for those who experienced a similar situation of being in school or in a community and not understanding the language.  Francisco Jimenez has had an exceptional life.  We are fortunate that he has shared it with us through his books.  “La Mariposa” is a beautifully illustrated book, with bright colors that portrays the feelings of Francisco so well.  The illustrator, Simon Silva, also worked in the fields as a young man, so the illustrations were as if they were lived first hand.  I chose his book and the following to represent my text set about migrant agricultural workers. - Lily Woll

Text Set

Translated Spanish/English copies of “Cajas de Cartón” / “The Circuit” and its sequel, “Senderos Fronterizos” / “Breaking Through” and “La Mariposa” by Francisco Jiménez. (Young adult / semiautobiographical/ migrant agricultural laborers)

“Calling the Doves” by Juan Felipe Herrera (picture book/ bilingual/ migrant agricultural laborers)

“My Diary from here to There” by Amada Irma Pérez (Migrant / picture book / bilingual)

“A New Day” by Don Bolognese (Migrant agricultural laborers / picture book)

“Harvesting Hope” by Kathleen Krull. (Migrant agricultural laborers / biography / picture book)

“A Day’s Work” by Eve Bunting. (Laborer / picture book)

 “Esperanza Rising” by Pam Muñoz Ryan. (Young adult/fiction/migrant agricultural laborers)

“Under the Mesquite” by Guadalupe Garcia McCall. (Family responsibility/ migrant / young adult fiction)

“Voices from the Field" by S. Beth Atkin. (Juvenile literature / migrant agricultural laborers)

“Latino Migrant Workers” by Christopher Hovius. (Juvenile literature / migrant agricultural laborers)

“Merchants of Labor: The Mexican Bracero Story” by Ernesto Galarza. (Academic/informational/ migrant agricultural laborers)

“Dark Harvest: Migrant Farmworkers in America” by Brent Ashabranner. (Academic juvenile literature / migrant agricultural laborers)

“Migrant Farm Workers: The Temporary People” by Linda Jacobs Altman. (Academic juvenile literature / migrant agricultural laborers)

“Barefoot Heart, Stories of a Migrant Child” by Elva Treviño Hart (Biography / migrant agricultural laborers)

“Malinche’s Children” by Daniel Houston-Davila (Fiction / migrant agricultural laborers)

“Daughters Betrayed” by Josie Méndez-Negrete (Fiction / migrant agricultural laborers)