Mola: Cuna Life Stories and Art [Hardcover]

Maricel E. Presilla (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1996 | Age Level: 9 and up

My little girls,
You will grow up and marry
a grown boy.
You will grow up....
I will look for molas,
Molas for the little girls.
--Cuna Lullaby

The remarkable Cuna Indians live on the San Blas Islands off the northern coast of Panama. Cuna women hold much of the power enjoyed by men in other societies. They select their husbands, pass property on to their children, and make a unique form of art called molas that depict every detail of their lives.

The spectacular fabric designs in vibrant tropical colors that appear on the front and back panels of molas give us a window into Cuna life. We may see a day in school, mythical birds, the story of Noah, jungle animals, or a girl's coming-of-age.

Author Maricel Presilla learned how to read molas when she stayed with the Cuna. Mola is her tribute to the women she came to know and the amazing art they create.

An American Bookseller "Pick of the Lists"
One of Bank Street College of Education's Best Children's Books of the Year

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As in her Life Around the Lake (coauthored with Gloria Soto), Presilla again examines a little-known culture by means of its textile arts. This time her subject is the Cuna Indians, who inhabit the San Blas Islands off the coast of Panama, and the avenue for exploration is the mola, a vibrant cloth panel with embroidered and appliqued designs. Outsiders frame molas as art; Cuna women sew them into blouses. The author's language is often as vivid as the painstakingly stitched, densely hued fabric art; she notes that from the air the San Blas Islands "seem no bigger than jellyfish floating lazily in the shiny turquoise and cobalt blue waters of the Caribbean Sea." Cuna women create the molas; as the author explains in an endnote, the high prices these works fetch from outsiders buttresses the dominant role women have traditionally played in Cuna society. Aided by crisply detailed photographs of molas, Presilla paints a memorable portrait of "women who wear their lives." Ages 7-up. (Oct.) TOUSSAINT L'OUVERTURE: The Fight for Haiti's Freedom Walter Dean Myers, illus. by Jacob Lawrence. S&S, $16 ISBN 0-689-80126-2 As a young Harlem Renaissance artist, Lawrence's first success was a series of 41 narrative paintings chronicling the life of Haitian activist Toussaint L'Ouverture, who in 1791 led a rebellion against the French planters. Lawrence's stylized tempura art, painted predominantly in muted earth hues, is punctuated by luminous splashes of white and red. His striking compositions recreate the drama of how the self-taught Toussaint became the revolt's leader, organizing workers into "a mighty army of liberation" to abolish slavery on both the French and Spanish sides of the island. They also convey Toussaint's despair in prison, where he died before Haiti's liberation in 1804. The battle scenes are a dynamic clatter of spiky, angular shapes and flying hooves; more quiet panels depict Toussaint studiously drafting battle plans and ships ominously arriving from France. Though Myers (Brown Angels) makes some broad leaps that may puzzle kids, he skillfully presents Toussaint's life story in succinct episodes that correspond to the paintings. His clean, effective text supports Lawrence's more complex and powerful paintings, both urbane and elemental in style. Ages 8-12. (Oct.) FYI: The artist whose paintings illustrate this book is himself the subject of a picture book (reviewed below).
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6?Molas are blouses with intricate, brilliantly colored reverse applique panels worn by Cuna Indian women. The decorative motifs are taken from the women's daily lives, folklore, and imaginations, a fact that this charming book uses to good effect. Presilla obviously loves and admires the Cuna, who inhabit the San Blas Islands off the north coast of Panama. The text describes the customs and lives of these matrilineal people and includes quotes and songs from the Cuna themselves. On every page, a detail or a full panel of a mola photographed in glowing colors amplifies the text. The method of the garment's construction is briefly described. Directions for making reverse or "cut-through" appliques can be found in Jeremy Comins's Latin American Crafts and Their Cultural Backgrounds (Lothrop, 1974; o.p.) and in Judith H. Corwin's Latin American and Caribbean Crafts (Watts, 1992). There is more detail about the Cuna, and molas, in Ana Maria Vazquez's Panama (Children's, 1991), which would be better for reports; but none give as many examples of this wonderful folk art as Presilla's book.?Pam Gosner, Maplewood Memorial Library, NJ
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); 1st edition (October 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805038019
• ISBN-13: 978-0805038019
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 10.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #607,028 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific story and photographs of the Kuna molas!, November 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Mola: Cuna Life Stories and Art (Hardcover)

After having spent over two years in Panama, I have seen the Kuna Indians and many styles of their molas. Maricel Presilla captures their beauty in the story and the many beautiful photographs. It is listed as a children's book, but I bought it for myself and have ordered copies to give to several of our Kuna (Panamanian spelling) friends. A wonderful book to have in your library about another fascinating culture.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars wonderful pictures, great for children!, October 22, 2009

By 

Marly Melsh "mmelsh" (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mola: Cuna Life Stories and Art (Hardcover)

this book is great. and in response to someones comment that the author told half-truths, I think she was trying to simplify a culture that is complex in order to gain the interest of children. authors do this all the time, and although it can seem bad or that they are not telling the truth about the culture, they do this in order to open the childrens eyes to a different world. plus, the author spelled Kuna with a "C", like Cuna, because when she wrote it, that was the preffered spelling. The C and K are interchangeable and the opinon of the preffered spelling has changed throughout the years. So give the girl some credit

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Nice photos but much misinformation, September 23, 2009

By 

Louise M. Young (Tioga, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mola: Cuna Life Stories and Art (Hardcover)

This book is illustrated with molas, the appliqued fiber art of the Kuna (preferred spelling) people of Panama and Colombia. If you buy this book, enjoy it for the photos. The text contains inaccuracies and half-truths, and oversimplifies complex cultural issues. The author even misspells the name of the people about whom she writes.