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Summary
Summary
Three Kings' Day -- the sixth of January -- is almost here! Anita and her older brothers, Tito and Tomas, walk in the streets the night before, celebrating and singing. Carrying gifts and dressed as the Three Kings -- Balthazar, Kaspar, and Melchoir -- they join the colorful procession in their town and visit neighbors.Spanish-speaking people all over the world celebrate the joyous Three Kings' Day -- also known as the Epiphany or Twelfth Night -- every January sixth. Award-winning author Lori Marie Carlson brings the holiday to life in this engaging family story about three children -- carrying gifts and dressed as Balthazar, Kaspar, and Melchoir -- who go from house to house in their neighborhood and reenact the journey of the Three Wise Men. Glowing oil paintings by Ed Martinez perfectly capture the warmth of this special holiday.
Notable Children's Trade Books in the Field of Social Studies 2000, National Council for SS & Child. Book Council
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Carlson has combined various observances of Spanish-speaking communities into one story. On the evening of January 5th, Anita and her two older brothers walk through the streets of their neighborhood dressed as kings. They go from door to door, looking for the baby Jesus. The young narrator explains, "On this holiday we visit friends and family to talk about and remember the journey of the Wise Men ." The text includes a sprinkling of Spanish words that flow smoothly and naturally throughout. The children spend the following day at home with their parents and relatives, opening presents and eating feast-day foods. Martinez's oil illustrations depict a warm, lively atmosphere and emphasize the youngsters' delight as they participate in the festivities. What is most appealing about this particular picture book is its unassuming presentation. Carlson keeps the story moving and does not allow the narrative to get bogged down in too many facts or details. She has found the perfect voice, a young girl who is excited by the unfolding events. This title may be used with Joseph Slate's The Secret Stars (Marshall Cavendish, 1998), which takes a magical approach to Epiphany.-M.M.H. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Radiant oil portraits reflect the affection of a close-knit family and community in this fluid tale of the Latino celebration of Epiphany. Carlson draws on several traditionsÄVenezuelan, Puerto Rican and MexicanÄas she tells how one family commemorates the journey of the wise men, the children going door to door to ask where they can find the baby, then joining the procession through town. At home, there are gifts and feast day foods and, best of all, Anita finds the tiny clay doll inside the honey cake and is crowned reina, or queen, of the festivities. Ages 4-8. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Carlson explains that her story combines several Latino traditions surrounding this holiday. For their Three Kings' Day celebration, Anita and her brothers take part in a parade, go door to door looking for the baby Jesus, and leave out shoes for the Three Kings to fill with gifts. Plot and character development are less important than the enumeration of holiday customs, but the warm text and oil paintings give the book some depth. From HORN BOOK Spring 2000, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A thin story cloaks a list of the customs and foods associated with the sixth of January, known variously as Epiphany, Twelfth Night, or, for the Spanish-speaking family in this book, Three Kings' Day. Carlson (Barrio Streets Carnival Dreams, 1996, etc.) has combined features of the celebrations from various Latino communities, incorporating them into the family festivities of young Anita, who tells the story. The festivities begin the night of the fifth of January with street processions featuring the wise men who followed the star to Christ's birthplace. That night Anita walks to visit friends and family with her older brothers, who keep hurrying her and telling her she is a baby. ``Is this where we can find the child?'' the children sing at various houses, and those they visit send them on until the boys have had enough and decide to go home. There Anita does as custom decrees, placing her empty shoes by her bed to be filled with small gifts and candies, along with small boxes full of grass, flowers, and hay. The next morning Anita is elated to see heaps of gifts under the decorated tree downstairs, and that evening when the family gathers for a holiday meal, she finds in her piece of cake the traditional tiny doll making its finder the king, or rey, or in her case, the reina. Oil paintings lend a rich glow to an orderly but warm bilingual story. (glossary) (Picture book. 4-8.)
Booklist Review
Ages 4^-8. Anita and her older brothers are celebrating Three Kings' Day, which begins on the night of January sixth. The children, dressed as kings, enter a procession in their town. They carry gifts of make-believe gold, frankincense, and myrrh, knocking at the doors of friends and family and chanting, "Is this where we can find the child?" They're offered a tasty morsel along the way. When they return home, Anita places her shoes beside her bed, hoping the kings will leave gifts inside them. She also leaves hay for the camels, sending her brothers into gales of laugher because she still believes in such things. In the morning, the children are pleased to find gifts for themselves, too. Later, Anita finds the tiny doll baked inside the special cake, making her queen. This nicely appointed, straightforward presentation of the traditional Latin American holiday includes a glossary of the Spanish words Carlson weaves into the text, and has luminous oil paintings, imbuing the story with life. --Shelley Townsend-Hudson
