Customer Reviews

The Sad Night: The Story of an Aztec Victory and a Spanish Loss

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I will say first of all that this is a bloody and somewhat gruesome story in parts. But war is bloody and gruesome. It was appropriate for my six year old boy. This was an interesting story (with fabulous pictures) that even teaches how the picture on the Mexican flag came about. I learned something by reading it and it fueled my son's interest in the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas.

This historically accurate story of the end of the Aztec Empire in Mexico is well written and engrossing. The history it contains is better suited for oder children, but the format is engaging for younger readers. It's the kind of book that made this adult reader want to learn more about the Aztec and Hernan Cortes!

This book has been beloved by my kids and nieces/nephews to read each and every year, from age 4 to age 13. I just attended the Aztec exhibit at the British Museum in London, and realized I knew and understood most of the exhibit from reading "The Sad Night". My mom and I were amazed at how historically accurate the story and drawings were to the Aztec iconography, while still being really interesting to look at and read for kids.
This is such a worthwhile book because kids keep coming back to it. It is so well done. Yes, its somewhat bloody in its story of war and conquest, but that's what really happened. I'm going to get it for our school library.

Review from a 10 year old Student:

The sad night is a picture book about how the Spanish invaded the Aztec empire. It starts out with the Aztecs looking for a place with an eagle on a cactus with a rattlesnake in its beak to build an empire then it skips ahead to Hernan Cortés's arrival in Mexico. It talks about most of the details from how the Aztecs thought that he was a god to when he came back and conquered them. It also has pictures similar to what the Aztecs would have put in their books or codices. If you are a kid who is interested in the Aztecs or the Spanish then this is definitely a book you want to read.

The charecters of this book are Hernando Cortez, a spanish soldier, and Moctezuma the Second, the king of the Aztecs.
This all takes place in Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital city and home of the Aztecs.
Cortez and his men want Moctezuma to protect them from any possible danger, but Moctezuma says that his kingdom is peaceful enugh and they do not need protection. So, Cortez and his army kidnap Moctezuma and then, when the Aztecs find out, the battle begins.
It is great when Cortez loses his men during the battle at the end because of the way the author tells the story.
This book is good for children who are interested in history about famous explorers.
Cady