A Note from Pat
For Mother’s Day one year, I was able to take my mother, Estela
Mora, a special gift, a book about her when she was in first grade
in El Paso, Texas. Mom lives in Santa Monica now and is
eighty-three. I tell her that when I show her childhood picture at
conferences and schools, people say she was so cute. Mom says,
"Tell them I’m still cute!"
I hope that you enjoy reading The Rainbow Tulip,
beautifully illustrated by Elizabeth Sayles. Elizabeth lives in
New York, and this fall I’m living in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She
and I have never met and never spoken which is the usual procedure
in children’s books. If I ever do meet her, I’ll say, "Thanks,
Elizabeth!"
Highlighted Reviews
"The Rainbow Tulip celebrates diversity...Mora writes in her
crystalline style."—Jane P. Marshall, Houston Chronicle
“The scenarios in words and soft-toned pictures show the warm,
loving family and also the fun and success at school. . . . At
first, the child is ashamed of her quiet, old-fashioned mother,
but her parents keep a piece of Mexico at home, and Estelita/Stella
comes to value her dual heritage, even though it is hard to be
different.”—Booklist
“Set in El Paso, Texas, this moving family memoir focuses on
Mora’s mother as a child who participated in her own way in the
May parade...With warmth and directness, Mora celebrates
diversity.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Tapping into her mother’s childhood memories, Mora has culled
a tender portrait of home life and early schooling to bring us a
story of young Estelita, who learns at a very early age to
negotiate her way through her dual Mexican-American
identity...This is a quiet book that speaks volumes to today’s
immigrant child.”—Multicultural Review
“Estelita likes and participates in various school activities
even as she experiences the difficulties and pleasures of being
different...Latino families will identify with Estelita’s close
family feelings. Also appealing are the soft-tones pastel
illustrations framed in white that show a loving family and a
successful, though different, Estelita at school.”—Book Links
“Pat Mora, well-known as a poet and nonfiction writer, has
created a touching and gentle tale...Mora’s story speaks to the
experience of many children, from many generations, who wished
their mothers looked more American, spoke English, but who also
drew their greatest strength from their families.”—New Mexico
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