Home for Navidad [Hardcover]

Harriet Ziefert (Author), Santiago Cohen (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 29, 2003 | Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

Rosa is ten years old, and she lives with her grandmother, her little brother, and her uncle in a small town in Mexico. But her mother lives in the United States, trying to earn much-needed money to send home to her family. So Rosa has not seen her mother in three years. She misses her mama all the time, but most particularly in the weeks leading up to Christmas. This year, Rosa hopes her mother will finally be able to come home for Navidad and stay with her in Santa Catarina forever.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-3-Ten-year-old Rosa lives with her grandmother, brother, and uncle in a small Mexican village. Her mother works as a cleaning woman in New York, and has not been home in three years. When Rosa receives Mama's letter promising to come for Navidad, she has a dream that it comes about. The first-person narrative, in English sprinkled with many Spanish words (there is a glossary), conveys Rosa's hope and yearning. The story ends with her dream that Mama returns for good. Cohen's childlike yet painterly pictures-somewhat reminiscent of Ludwig Bemelmans's work-are saturated with deep and vivid color and vibrate with feeling and intensity.-S. P.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

PreS-Gr. 3. Rosa, 10, hasn't seen her mother for three years, since Mama left their Mexican village to work in New York and send money back to the family. Now Mama is working extra hours, saving for what she hopes will be a one-way ticket home, and Rosa dreams the family will be together for Navidad. The bright double-page paintings in folk-art style show the child's daily life, as she is cared for by her kind grandmother and uncle. In the early morning she picks corn. Then a beautiful double-page spread shows a red pickup truck fetching children from the bright green fields to drive them to a one-room schoolhouse. Later Rosa helps Abuela wash clothes in the river. The last pages show Rosa's dream of reunion and celebration, but it's still not certain that her dream will come true. Spanish words are part of the story, with a glossary at the end, and the combination of simple words and bold, vibrant art relays the wrenching family separation from the child's viewpoint. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (September 29, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0618349766
• ISBN-13: 978-0618349760
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 9.7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,080,013 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Harriet Ziefert was born in New Jersey. She grew up in North Bergen, New Jersey, where she attended the local schools. She graduated from Smith College, then received a Masters degree in Education from New York University. "About twelve years ago," says Ziefert in a 1995 interview, "I tried to get a job as an editor, but no one would hire me as a trade editor. So I decided to write my own books." Since then, she has written several hundred books, mostly picture books and easy-to-read books. "I write books very quickly," she says, "in about twelve hours. I rewrite them three times over three days, and then they're done." She writes about twenty books a year. Ziefert's picture book A New Coat for Anna is about a girl in a bombed-out European city during the months just after World War II. Anna has outgrown her old coat, and her mother trades her few surviving treasures--a watch, a lamp, a necklace, and a porcelain teapot--in order to obtain wool and have it spun, woven, and finally sewn into a fine red coat for Anna. A Horn Book Magazine reviewer stated, "the simple text, based on a true story, carries the narrative along effectively." The book, which was illustrated by Anita Lobel, was chosen as one of ten books to be read aloud by former First Lady Barbara Bush as part of a program promoting reading. Ziefert was invited to the White House for the occasion. The reason Ziefert began writing easy-to-read books was that she felt "they were getting too hard for kids to read in the first grade." She says that she wrote easy-to-read books with seventy-five or fewer words, even ones with fifty or fewer words, "to see how much of a story" she could produce with that limit. She enjoyed the challenge, and cites her book Sleepy Dog as an example. "Sleepy Dog is the most successful book I've ever done, in terms of number of books sold." She's also been working on a developmental program with publisher Dorling Kindersley, made up of books for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. Her book Pete's Chicken, which was illustrated by Laura Rader, was reviewed in the New York Times Book Review as "a simple, sweet 'Song of Myself' for children . . . [which] applauds the specialness of every child as it reminds parents of the healing power of just being there for children." Among her other books is a series of easy-to-read books, such as Trip Day and Worm Day, about an inventive science teacher and his rambunctious class of students. Ziefert's book Let's Get a Pet was named an Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children by a joint committee of the National Science Teachers Association and the Children's Book Council. . Ms. Ziefert lives in Maplewood, New Jersey and Lincoln, Massachusetts. She has two adult sons.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars realistic but joyful portrayal of a mother's homecoming at Christmas, December 15, 2007

By 

Travis Ann Sherman (St. Petersburg, Fl United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Home for Navidad (Hardcover)

Amid all the foolery and fun of Christmas, Home for Navidad reminds us of the love of family that unites us all at this time. Who is that faceless maid who makes up our bed in our New York hotel room? It's good to learn that she is ten-year-old Rosa's mama. She has saved enough money to go back to live forever with her little girl. Now that's a nice Christmas story. Ziefert tells it simply but beautifully, and Cohen's illustrations are evocative.