Book Review : THE RAINBOW TULIP

A. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Mora Pat. 1999. THE RAINBOW TULIP. New York: Penguin Putnam. ISBN 0670872911.

B. PLOT SUMMARY
Stella is a Mexican American. She speaks English at school but Spanish at home because her parents emigrate from Mexico and both of them cannot speak English very well. However Stella hopes her mother can speak English well like her neighbors as well as her classmate’s mothers. Stella’s mother is a warm and mild person, and always supports her daughter and gives her whatever she wants. Unlike the dressing and hair style of her mother’s colorless long dresses and a bun, Stella likes colorful dresses, and she cares about other people’s viewpoints on her. On the May parade, Stella wants to be different with other friends with a rainbow tulip dress instead of one single color tulip. Stella’s mother makes her dream come true which encourages her to have confidence on parade and would like to know more about her own culture.

C. RITICAL ANALYSIS
This is a typical picture book presenting Mexican culture recurring themes about family, food, vessels, holidays and immigrants like Harris addresses. Therefore, it is easy to find many cultural marks related to Mexican culture overall context. The story begins with a picture of the whole family at breakfast when mother serving yellow cod liver oil. Stella’s favorite dessert, sweet and sour lime sherbet, is the symbol of immigrants’ feelings. The costumes especially girls’ tulip costume, parade, and Maypole dance in the May parade which are also cultural markers in this book. In addition to the previous visual factors of cultural markers, the author, Mora, depicts both parents with the attitude of nurturing children, the inside feeling of a young girl and the life of immigrants which can be other culture markers.

Spanish Language plays important roles in this story. Mora uses the first-person account from a little girl to tell this story. The intimate terms, such as mama’ in Stella’s dialogues, and her mother consistently replies and answers her in Spanish enhance the relationship between the protagonist with her families in this culture. Stella is a girl not only eager to show her best dressing and focus on her appearance, but also likes to help her friends and make their dance successful. Stella is the role of typical characters of immigrants. They are hesitant and worry about other person’s perspectives.

Mora not only plainly depicts this story about family and friendship, but also describes a dilemma about a little girl’s self-esteem and cultural value; about her life’s difference between at home and outside, and her expectation between her mother at home and outside. The best part of this story is that Mora uses a taste of a traditional Mexican food, lime sherbet to metaphor the life of immigrants; it is sweet and sore and is hard to be different.

D. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Houston Chronicle: "The Rainbow Tulip celebrates diversity...Mora writes in her crystalline style."
Booklist: “The scenarios in words and soft-toned pictures show the warm, loving family and also the fun and success at school. . . . At first, the child is ashamed of her quiet, old-fashioned mother, but her parents keep a piece of Mexico at home, and Stella comes to value her dual heritage, even though it is hard to be different.”
Kirkus Reviews: “Set in El Paso, Texas, this moving family memoir focuses on Mora’s mother as a child who participated in her own way in the May parade...With warmth and directness, Mora celebrates diversity.”
Children's Literature: “Mora weaves many Spanish phrases into her text as she focuses on the May festival for which Stella's aunt sews a colorful tulip-petal skirt. The sensitive, muted watercolor illustrations suit the story's mood while the charming facial expressions help the characters come alive in this timely book.”
Library Journal: “Based on a story from the author's mother's childhood, and perfectly extended by soft, warm pastel drawings framed in white, this tale of family love and support crosses cultural boundaries and may remind youngsters of times when their families made all the difference. Pair this with Mary Hoffman's Amazing Grace, another story of an irrepressible child supported by a loving family.”
Multicultural Review: “Tapping into her mother’s childhood memories, Mora has culled a tender portrait of home life and early schooling to bring us a story of young Estelita, who learns at a very early age to negotiate her way through her dual Mexican-American identity...This is a quiet book that speaks volumes to today’s immigrant child.”
New Mexico Magazine: “Pat Mora, well-known as a poet and nonfiction writer, has created a touching and gentle tale...Mora’s story speaks to the experience of many children, from many generations, who wished their mothers looked more American, spoke English, but who also drew their greatest strength from their families.”

E. CONNECTIONS
Enrichment Activities
Bookmark Creations: Create bookmarks with your students and allow them to choose the content. Ideas include drawing their favorite character, scene, and happiest/saddest moment.
Create a Symbol: Have students design and color their own symbol to illustrate their connections to the special people in their lives.
Family Interview: Discuss with students the importance of carrying on family history through stories and conversations with their elders. Then, ask students to interview a family member and create a poem, dance, or song that represents their family.
Guest Speaker: Getting someone who has immigrated to the United States to come in and speak about the transition and their feelings can be a wonderful experience for children, especially those who are in a similar situation.
Integrate Art: Contact your school's art teacher and brainstorm ideas that would integrate art and the book The Rainbow Tulip. Some suggested materials to use include clay, pastels, or paper collage.

Books by Pat Mora
Agua, Agua, Agua , 1994
Bakery Lady , 2001
Birthday Basket for Tia , 1997
Confetti: Poems for Children , 1996
Delicious Hullabaloo , 1998
The Desert Is My Mother (El Desierto Es Mi Madre) , 1994
Listen to the Desert , 2001
Love to Mama: A Tribute to Mothers , 2001
Maria Paints the Hills , 2002
My Own True Name: New and Selected Poems for Young Adults, 1984-1999 , 2000
The Night the Moon Fell , 2000
Pablo's Tree , 1994
The Race of Toad and Deer , 2001
This Big Sky , 2002
Tomas and the Library Lady , 1997
Uno, DOS, Tres: One, Two, Three , 2000
Wachale!: Poetry and Prose About Growing Up Latino in America , 2001