Child of the Flower-Song People: Luz Jiménez, Daughter of the Nahua by Amescua, Gloria

Award-winning illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh brings to life debut author Gloria Amescua's lyrical picture book biography of an Indigenous Nahua woman from Mexico who taught and preserved her people's culture through modeling for famous artists.

A 2022 Pura Belpré Award Author Honor Book

She was Luz Jiménez,
child of the flower-song people,
the powerful Aztec,
who called themselves Nahua--
who lost their land but who did not disappear.

As a young Nahua girl in Mexico during the early 1900s, Luz learned how to grind corn in a metate, to twist yarn with her toes, and to weave on a loom. By the fire at night, she listened to stories of her community's joys, suffering, and survival, and wove them into her heart.

Author: Gloria Amescua
Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
Published: 08/17/2021
Pages: 48
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.05lbs
Size: 10.10h x 9.20w x 0.50d
ISBN: 9781419740206
Audience: Ages 9-12

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 5.3
Point Value: 0.5
Interest Level: Lower Grade
Quiz #/Name: 514187 / Child of the Flower-Song People: Luz Jimenez, Daughter of the Nahua

Award: Pura Belpre Award - Honor Book

Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 07/01/2021
Publishers Weekly 07/12/2021
Booklist 08/01/2021 pg. 44
Horn Book Magazine 09/01/2021 pg. 111
Shelf Awareness 08/20/2021
School Library Journal 10/01/2021 pg. 99
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2021 - Superior,Well Above Average

About the Author
Gloria Amescua is an educator, poet, and children's book writer. She was awarded Lee & Low's 2016 New Voices Honor Award for her manuscript about Luz Jiménez and was named a finalist for the Austin Chapter Cynthia Leitich Smith Mentorship Award and We Need Diverse Books' mentorship program. This is her debut picture book.

Duncan Tonatiuh's books have won numerous awards: Diego Rivera won the Pura Belpré Illustration Award; Pancho Rabbit won two Pura Belpré Honor awards, for illustration and narrative; Separate Is Never Equal won the prestigious Sibert Honor Award; and Funny Bones won the Sibert Award. He lives in Mexico.