The Christmas Gift / El regalo de Navidad (Spanish Edition) [Hardcover]

Francisco Jimenez (Author), Claire B. Cotts (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 27, 2000 | Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

With honesty and rare grace, award-winning author Francisco Jiménez shares his most poignant Christmas memory in this remarkable book. Illustrated with paintings full of strength and warmth, written in spare bilingual text, this simple story celebrates the true spirit of Christmas, and illuminates how children do indeed draw strength from the bonds of their families.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Ages 5-9. Like La Mariposa (1999), this picture book in both English and Spanish tells one story from Jimenez's award-winning autobiographical collection, The Circuit: Sto ries from the Life of a Migrant Child (1997). The boy Panchito dreams of getting a red ball for Christmas; but there's no work and no money for presents, and the family must move again. When a man and his pregnant wife try to sell their meager possessions to get food and shelter, Panchito hears his father say, "We're broke, too." The surprise on the last page reveals Papa's true gifts of kindness and love. The child's focus is on his own disappointing gift, and, like him, the young picture-book audience may miss the subtlety of the Christmas metaphor about the couple finding no room at the inn. However, Cotts' stylized acrylic paintings, rich in color, express the tenderness of the narrative and the facts of the poverty. The story's power is in the simple words that directly tell of having to leave home. As the family drives away in search of work, Panchito waves to his friends on the school playground, "but they [do] not see him." Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

“The family’s odyssey is heartrending, but it is the truth, and it’s skillfully told by someone who’s been there.” --Rudolfo Anaya, author of BLESS ME, ULTIMA

"Told both in English and in Spanish, this bittersweet tale is base on an incident from Jiménez’s childhood in a family of migrant farm workers." —Publishers Weekly, starred review 9/25/00 Publishers Weekly, Starred

"A touching holiday offering, with an emphasis on family love and sharing." —School Library Journal School Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (September 27, 2000)
• Language: Spanish
• ISBN-10: 0395928699
• ISBN-13: 978-0395928691
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #310,682 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #52 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > Multiculturalism
  • #90 in Books > Libros en español > Infantil y juvenil > Asuntos

More About the Author

Francisco Jiménez emigrated from Tlaquepaque, Mexico, to California, where he worked for many years in the fields with his family. He received both his master's degree and his Ph.D. from Columbia University and is now chairman of the Modern Languages and Literature Department at Santa Clara University, the setting of much of Reaching Out. He is the award-winning author of The Circuit, Breaking Through, La Mariposa, and his newest novel, Reaching Out. He lives in Santa Clara, California, with his family

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful and moving story., October 29, 2001

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Christmas Gift / El regalo de Navidad (Spanish Edition) (Hardcover)

A true story from the author's childhood, this is a beautiful and moving tale told simply in both English and Spanish. My wife and I were both dabbing our eyes with handkerchiefs by the time we finished reading. The illustrations are very well done and enhance the message of the book. Highly recommended as an antidote to the typical materialist emphasis of Christmas.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Attention Parents!, January 4, 2003

By 

Cathy Matteson (Santa Clara, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Christmas Gift / El regalo de Navidad (Spanish Edition) (Hardcover)

I actually found this book in a barber shop. The illustrations got the attention of my 2 year old. What a find! Every parent regardless of the age of their children should read this book at bed time. It had the attention of my four children, ages 2 to 10. I actually felt like I was reading my parents, and grandparents Christmas story. I was lucky enough to not have to live my life through rough times like this. I was able to have the education that my parents and grandparents worked so hard for, but only could dream of. This story helped me remember and appreciate all they had to endure. What a story it brought me back to my roots. Only warning I have for future readers... have tissues close at hand!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! Francisco Jiménez hits a HOME RUN again, January 24, 2004

By 

Scott AL Beck (Stateboro, GA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Christmas Gift / El regalo de Navidad (Spanish Edition) (Hardcover)

This is yet another powerful children's book by Francisco Jiménez. His books, based upon his own experiences as a child of migrant farmworkers, are consistently both beautiful and instructive, heart-rending and joyous. For the vast majority of Americans who don't think about the lives of the people pick and process the food we eat, this book is a gentle, but strong reminder of the continued existance of poverty in our nation.