Customer Reviews

An Elegy on the Death of Cesar Chavez

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Cesar Chavez was a champion of the people and Rodolfo Anaya tries to convey that with his use of language. Publishers Weekly claims Anaya is "bogged down in flowery metaphors." I would disagree. Rather I see this tribute and the choice of words to describe Chavez and his times as an eloquent use of language. The target audience is young children who have no concept of Chavez and his struggles; if anything the pictures painted with words or concepts might be too difficult to grasp for a young mind. Enter the teacher or parent to supplement the information and simplify. Each page has a theme with Anaya's poetry capturing and puntuating the point. Of particualr interest are the illustrations which are excellent and quite powerful. Each illustration corresponds with the poetry and theme of the page. The book is one that calls for young people to remember the struggles of the civil rights era for Chicanos and to continue the fight for equality and justice. The lessons of Chavez's life are given and a plea for people not to fight each other but rather for each other. At the end of the book there is chronolgy of the life of Cesar Chavez that can be useful for the teacher. Ths book would be a nice addition to the classroom or school library for children of the middle school ages. Recommended for children who are learning English in the primary grades.

I ordered two of these by mistake, but was glad I did, as I gave one as a Christmas gift. A moving
elegy for a great American leader who should be remembered for generations to come.