Module 2-Multicultural Poetry/LS 5663-20

Module 2-Multicultural Poetry
Alarcon,Francisco X.. Laughing tomatoes and other spring poems/Jitomates risuenos y otros poemas de primavera. San Francisco, CA: Children's Book Press/Libros para ninos, 1997. ISBN 0-89239-139-1
Francisco Alarcon uses the concept of springtime and different vegetables to stimulate thoughts and emotions of special times with family, such as meal times or cooking with family. Many memories are evoked by a certain smell or by eating a certain food. The illustrations bring the words to life and the language used gives the reader such elaborate descriptions of foods often found in the Hispanic culture. I would love to be able to read, and verbalize the Spanish language in order to truly appreciate the gift of words given by the poet. Any of the poems in this book would be amazing to share during Hispanic Heritage Month(September) or during Cinco de Mayo. I would love to have parents come in an share the favorite moments while cooking with their parents, and possibly read the following poem:
My Grandma’s Songs
Would follow the beat of the washing machine
Turning our kitchen into a dance floor
Consoling the chairs placed upside down
Delighting the family portraits on the walls
Putting to sleep the sheets on the clothesline
Giving flavor to the boiling pot of beans
The songs my grandma used to sing
Could make the stars come out
Could turn my grandma into a young girl
Going back to the river for water
And make her laugh and cry at the same time.
The familiar childhood experiences described in several of the poems bring back memories and for all that read the poems, drawing the reader to a time of simplicity and innocence. The writings use imaginative, descriptive words to enlighten the reader about topics shared in the Hispanic culture.