Former teacher, university administrator and author Pat Mora has written more than 35 award-winning children’s books. Her works’ honors include the Latino Literacy Hall of Fame; the Tejas Star Reading List; the ALA Notable Children’s Books; the International Latino Book Award, Best Children’s Fiction Picture Book; and the Pura Belpré Author Honor Book. Beyond her writings, Mora is also the founder of Children’s Day, Book Day/El día de los niños, El día de los libros (Día), which encourages children’s literacy.  And so for this month’s School Library it is our pleasure to feature the works of Pat Mora.  Book summaries, book covers and curriculum activities for the K-12 section of the School Library are courtesy of http://www.patmora.com

K-12

“THE BAKERY LADY/LA SEÑORA DE LA PANADERÍA”

Publisher: Piñata Books/Arte Público Press

ISBN-13: 978-1558853430

Amazon Grade Level Recommendation: 1-4

Curriculum Activities: http://www.patmora.com/ideas/#bakery

In this colorful, bilingual picture book, Mónica yearns to be a baker like her grandparents. Her first real test comes as she and her beloved grandparents prepare for the Feast of the Three Kings, el Día de los Reyes Magos. When Mónica finds the traditional baby figure in the round bread ring, the rosca de reyes, it becomes her responsibility to plan the celebration: invitations, decorations, and most importantly, the lemon cookies that Mónica will bake especially for her family and friends. Although she wants to do it all herself, she discovers that the love and help of family can make any job a joy.

“GRACIAS/THANKS”

Publisher: Lee & Low Books

ISBN-13: 978-1600602580

Amazon Grade Level Recommendation: 

Preschool – 2

Curriculum Activities: http://www.patmora.com/ideas/#gracias

What is there to be thankful for? For the little boy/main character of this bilingual, lighthearted children’s book, the world is full of things to be thankful for: flying ladybugs, ocean waves, his best friend, his dad’s thick chocolate syrup, the bees that don’t sting him, the crickets that chirp him to sleep at night, his little brother who throws mashed peas at his sister and more. Even things that don’t seem like things to be thankful for, like the sun waking him up every morning, he is grateful for since then he won’t “sleep for years and years and grow a long, white beard.”

“WATER ROLLS, WATER RISES/EL AGUA RUEDA, EL AGUA SUBE”

Publisher: Children’s Book Press

ISBN-13: 978-0892393251

Amazon Recommended Grade Level: 1-6

Curriculum Activities: http://www.patmora.com/images/activities-water-rolls.pdf

Here is a poetic ode to the beauty of the natural world as expressed by the movement and moods of water on Earth. With every evocative verse, we visit one of 14 different water landscapes and cultural areas around the world, each stunningly illustrated with a breathtaking view of a place of natural beauty and conveying a sense of the drama, joy, power, serenity, grandeur or peacefulness of water. From the Grand Canal of Venice to Qutang Gorge in China, from the Sahara in Morocco to the Andes of Chile, we learn about the world through the lens of water, our most precious, life-giving resource.

“DOÑA FLOR: A TALL TALE ABOUT A GIANT WOMAN WITH A GREAT BIG HEART”

Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers

ISBN-13: 978-0375861444 

Amazon Recommended Grade Level: 

Preschool - 2

Curriculum Activities: http://www.patmora.com/ideas/#dona

Available in both English and Spanish, this is the story of Doña Flor, a giant lady who lives in a tiny village in the American Southwest and who is well-liked by her neighbors and their children. One day, the villagers hear a terrifying noise; it sounds like a huge animal bellowing just outside their village. Flor wants to protect her neighbors, so with the help of her animal friends, she sets off for the highest mesa to find the creature. Soon enough, the joke is on Flor and her friends, who come to rescue her, as she discovers the small secret behind that big noise.

Higher Education

“COMPOUND SOLUTIONS: PHARMACEUTICAL ALTERNATIVES FOR GLOBAL HEALTH”

by Susan Craddock

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

ISBN-13: 978-1517900793

An unparalleled, interdisciplinary analysis, “Compound Solutions: Pharmaceutical Alternatives for Global Health” examines Product Development Partnerships (PDPs), which arose early in the 21st century to develop new drugs and vaccines for infectious diseases in low-income countries. Here, for the first time, is a sustained examination of PDPs: the work they do, the partnerships they form, their mission and their underlying philosophy of addressing global health needs.  In addition, “Compound Solutions” explores the possibilities and parameters of drug and vaccine partnerships; the scientific collaboration, innovation and contradiction; the contingent ethics of tuberculosis clinical trials; and tuberculosis and the future of humanitarian pharmaceutical production.

“CHILDREN’S MEDICINES: WHAT EVERY PARENT, GRANDPARENT, AND TEACHER NEEDS TO KNOW” 1ST EDITION

by Edward A. Bell, PharmD, BCPS

Publisher: John Hopkins University Press

ISBN-13: 978-1421423753

Most parents have worried about the side effects and possible long-term consequences of administering a particular medication to their child. A pediatric pharmacist for nearly 30 years, Edward A. Bell, has spent his career listening carefully to parents’ concerns. In “Children’s Medicines: What Every Parent, Grandparent, and Teacher Needs to Know,” Bell draws on the latest scientific information, coupled with his experience in hospital and clinic settings, as a university professor, and as a parent to answer questions about whether, when and what medications to give to infants, children and teenagers. Bell also touches on practical issues of medication administration.

“FACE/ON: FACE TRANSPLANTS AND THE ETHICS OF THE OTHER”

by Sharrona Pearl

Publisher: University Of Chicago Press

ISBN-13: 978-0226461366

Are our identities attached to our faces? If so, what happens when the face connected to the self is gone forever—or replaced? “Face/On: Face Transplants and the Ethics of the Other” investigates the stakes for changing the face—and the changing stakes for the face—in both contemporary society and the sciences. The first comprehensive cultural study of face transplant surgery, “Face/On” reveals our true relationships to faces and facelessness; explains the significance we place on facial manipulation; and decodes how we understand loss, reconstruction and transplantation of the face. Source material for this book includes bioethical and medical reports and personal interviews. 

“VOICES OF MENTAL HEALTH: MEDICINE, POLITICS, AND AMERICAN CULTURE, 1970-2000”

by Dr. Martin Halliwell

Publisher: Rutgers University Press 

ISBN-13: 978-0813576787

This dynamic and layered account of mental health in the late 20th century interweaves three important stories: the rising political prominence of mental health in the United States since 1970; the shifting medical diagnostics of mental health at a time when health activists, advocacy groups and public figures were all speaking out about the needs and rights of patients; and the concept of voice in literature, film, memoir, journalism and medical case study that connects the health experiences of individuals to shared stories. Martin Halliwell breaks new ground in deepening our understanding of the place, politics and trajectory of mental health.