Nobel Peace Prize winner and noted Maya activist Rigoberta Menchú Tum returns once more to the world of her childhood in The Secret Legacy.
Seven-year-old Ixkem is chosen by her grandfather amongst all the villagers to inherit the responsibility for tending his special cornfield. Ixkem goes to the field and begins to shout and stomp to frighten away the animals who would like to share the harvest. Suddenly a mass of tiny creatures appear — the b'e'n — secret animal spirits of which there is one for every human on earth. They take Ixkem into the underworld, where she tells them the amazing stories that her grandfather has told her. In exchange the b'e'n whisper a secret for her to take to her grandfather.
Rich and vibrant illustrations by noted Mazatec-Mexican artist Domi perfectly complement this magical Maya tale.
Key Text Features
Illustrations
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.2
Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
Nobel Peace Prize winner and noted Maya activist Rigoberta Menchú Tum returns once more to the world of her childhood in The Secret Legacy.
Seven-year-old Ixkem is chosen by her grandfather amongst all the villagers to inherit the responsibility for tending his special cornfield. Ixkem goes to the field and begins to shout and stomp to frighten away the animals who would like to share the harvest. Suddenly a mass of tiny creatures appear — the b'e'n — secret animal spirits of which there is one for every human on earth. They take Ixkem into the underworld, where she tells them the amazing stories that her grandfather has told her. In exchange the b'e'n whisper a secret for her to take to her grandfather.
Rich and vibrant illustrations by noted Mazatec-Mexican artist Domi perfectly complement this magical Maya tale.
Key Text Features
Illustrations
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.2
Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
| Published By | Groundwood Books Ltd — Sep 1, 2020 |
| Specifications | 66 pages | 6.14 in x 9.21 in |
| Keywords | fables and folklore; mythology; childhood; Maya; world origin narratives; Indigenous; natural world; mythical elements; Guatemala; Caribbean and Latin America; multigenerational; respect for others; respect for self; respect for environment; inferring; connecting; Common Core aligned; CC Literature Key Ideas and Details; grade 3; International Latino Book Awards; memoir; nonfiction; illustrations; translation; Nobel Peace Prize winning author; |
| Written By | Rigoberta Menchu Tum won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992. She lives in Guatemala and devotes herself to fighting for the rights of Maya Guatemalans and other First Nations in the Americas. |
| Written By | Dante Liano is an eminent Guatemalan writer and National Literature Award laureate. He currently lives in Milan, where he teaches Latin American literature. |
| Illustrated by |
DOMI is a well-known Mazateca artist, whose vivid illustrations appear in many children’s books, including The Story of Colors by Zapatista leader Subcomandante Marcos, The Night the Moon Fell (La noche que se cayó la luna) and The Race of Toad and Deer (La carrera del sapo y el venado), both by Pat Mora. She has also illustrated The Girl from Chimel and The Honey Jar, by Rigoberta Menchú and Dante Liano. She lives in Tlaquepaque, Mexico. |
| Written By |
| Rigoberta Menchu Tum won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992. She lives in Guatemala and devotes herself to fighting for the rights of Maya Guatemalans and other First Nations in the Americas. |
| Written By |
| Dante Liano is an eminent Guatemalan writer and National Literature Award laureate. He currently lives in Milan, where he teaches Latin American literature. |
| Illustrated by |
|
DOMI is a well-known Mazateca artist, whose vivid illustrations appear in many children’s books, including The Story of Colors by Zapatista leader Subcomandante Marcos, The Night the Moon Fell (La noche que se cayó la luna) and The Race of Toad and Deer (La carrera del sapo y el venado), both by Pat Mora. She has also illustrated The Girl from Chimel and The Honey Jar, by Rigoberta Menchú and Dante Liano. She lives in Tlaquepaque, Mexico. |
| Audience | ages 8 to 12 / grades 3 to 7 |
| Key Text Features | illustrations |
| Common Core | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.2 |
“There’s a lot of humor in these sparkling folktales, nicely complemented by Domi’s vibrant, Chagall-esque oils.” —School Library Journal