 | Giving flower : the story of the poinsettia Author: Dobbs, Alda P. | |
| Price: $14.24 | ||
Summary:
The story of the Poinsettia goes back through hundreds of years, treasured by the Aztecs, the inspiration for Mexico's most famous Christmas legend. After the flower caught the eye of the first US ambassador to Mexico, it was named after him. A century later, millions of Americans saw the brilliant red flower on their first color television screens.
| Illustrator: | Mendoza, Emily |
| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: LG Reading Level: 5.70 Points: .5 Quiz: 556979 |
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (10/01/25)
School Library Journal (+) (09/01/25)
Booklist (09/01/25)
The Hornbook (00/11/25)
Full Text Reviews:
Booklist - 09/01/2025 This eye-opening picture book uses the poinsettia to illuminate Mexican history and its intersections with U.S. history. The text first grounds us in the where and when of poinsettias: they bloom in the state of Guerrero in southwest Mexico at the start of winter. The emphasis throughout is on the “gifts of this flower.” For example, the ancient Indigenous Nahua people crushed poinsettias to make medicine and used them to dye the clothes of warriors and decorate ancient palaces. We learn how the Spanish friars popularized the legend of a poor girl whose gift of weeds to baby Jesus was transformed into the poinsettia, how botanist and U.S. ambassador to Mexico Joel Roberts Poinsett brought samples back to America, and how an advertising campaign made poinsettias the favorite flower of Christmas. The illustrations are arresting in their bold colors and stark contrasts between light and dark. A resonant ending shares a message on how we must find a way to make the beauty around us flourish. - Copyright 2025 Booklist.
