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.
Praise
**STARRED REVIEW**Booklist
"Amescua's spare yet lyrical text reminds readers that Luz was a 'child of the flower-song people, / . . . who lost their land, but who did not disappear.' She also notes the harsh treatment Luz endured at government schools designed to stifle Indigenous culture. Tonatiuh's signature Mixtec-inspired art is a delight... Luz's traditional stories are depicted as outlined carvings in the mountainous landscape and seem to emanate from Luz's mouth somewhat like a speech balloon."
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**STARRED REVIEW**Publishers Weekly
"Amescua sensitively excavates the compelling story of the woman known as “the spirit of Mexico”. . .Tonatiuh’s hand-drawn, digitally collaged images mix motifs from Indigenous Mexican art with modern textures, celebrating the endurance and resilience of treasured traditions in a changing world."
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**STARRED REVIEW**School Library Journal
"Tonatiuh’s beautiful pre-Columbian illustrations provide a vivid play-by-play of events and evoke Jiménez’s ultimate impact on the art world. An author’s note gives more historical context, and a time line, glossary, and bibliography make this a valuable source for student researchers."
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"Threaded with cultural insights, poetic language, and stylized art, Jiménez comes to life. . .. A timely and thought-provoking true story.”Donna Janell Bowman, author of King of the Tightrope
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"Child of the Flower-Song People is a gift to young readers, all of whom should know how Luz Jiménez carried on the skills, beauty, and pride of native Mexican people."Cynthia Levinson, author of The People’s Painter
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"Child of the Flower-Song People deftly balances fascinating biographical moments with an earnest sense of social justice for the indigenous people of Mexico."David Bowles, author of My Two Border Towns
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"Tonatiuh’s hand-drawn, digitally collaged illustrations, with an iconographic nod to the Mixtec codices, are rich in color and texture. Indeed, it’s this complicated relationship between old traditions and modern influences that make his art such a good complement to Amescua’s text."The Horn Book Magazine
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"Amescua enhances her flowing prose with natural imagery (mountains, winds, blossoms), as if Amescua is re-grounding Luz's Nahua identity into the very earth. Tonatiuh's magnificent signature style. . .couldn't be more ideal for animating Amescua's illuminating text. . .This perfectly paired collaboration provides both reclamation and revelation."Shelf Awareness
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"Amescua succeeds in introducing Luz. . .Closely following the text, the illustrations bring Luz to life. An important window into the ravages of colonialism and the plight of the Indigenous peoples of Mexico."Kirkus Reviews
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