Mango Moon: When Deportation Divides a Family

by Diane de Anda, Sue Cornelison (Illustrator)

Overview

First Book's 2nd Annual Title Raves
2020 Paterson Prize for Books for Young People
2020 Skipping Stones Honor Award
2020 Alma Flor Ada Best Latino Focused Children's Picture Book, Second Place

A timely story that portrays the heartbreak of a family separated by deportation.

When a father is taken away from his family and faces deportation, the family is left to grieve and wonder what comes next. Maricela, Manuel, and their mother face the many challenges of having their lives completely changed by the absence of their father and husband. Having to move, missed soccer games and birthday parties, and emptiness are just part of the now day-to-day norm. Mango Moon shows what life is like from a child's perspective when a parent is deported, and the heartbreaking realities the family has to face.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807549629
Publisher:	Whitman, Albert & Company
Publication date:	10/01/2021
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	93,571
Product dimensions:	7.80(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD800L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Diane de Anda, a third generation Latina, is a retired professor in the Department of Social Welfare at UCLA. Author of several children’s books featuring Latino families, she published five books in 2018 and 2019.

Sue Cornelison is the author and illustrator of many children's books. During the summer, she spends time at her little cabin in the woods in northern Minnesota. She relishes her time with family, coaching her tumbling and trampoline team, and playing wildlife photographer when she isn't illustrating.

Editorial Reviews

First Book's 2nd Annual Title Raves
2020 Paterson Prize for Books for Young People
2020 Skipping Stones Honor Award
2020 Alma Flor Ada Best Latino Focused Children's Picture Book, Second Place

"Author De Anda honors the real challenge that many children face when a parent is deported and reminds them that it's 'all right…to cry.' Available in both Spanish and English, this story validates a heartbreaking experience." —Kirkus Reviews


"Ten-year-old Maricela stares at the mango-colored moon, reminiscing on the many nights during which she and her father did the same—before his deportation. Social worker and scholar DeAnda frankly presents simple responses to the questions immigrant children might have after being separated from their parents. This Spanish version of the simultaneous English publication is sometimes awkward in its phrasing, but overall this is a much-needed text for many libraries serving families in similar situations. Though the book covers a heavy subject, Cornelison's evocative, light-filled spreads add a hint of hope, even while depicting how Maricela’s dad’s plight affects the whole family—through finances, living situations, school performance. Touching and timely, this is a strong choice for picture-book shelves, especially where bibliotherapy is needed." —Booklist

From the Publisher

01/24/2020

Gr 2–4—Nothing was the same since Papi was taken from his work. He had not done anything wrong, he just did not have papers. Siblings Maricela and Manuel try to adjust. However, life starts to change. Mom has to find another job that pays better, the family of three moves in with relatives to lower their cost of living, and the children switch schools. One thing returns: the full orange moon that Maricela and her dad saw the last night they were together. The author, a third-generation Latina and UCLA's Emeritus Professor of the Department of Social Welfare, knows too well the sociopolitical hardships surrounding Latino families. The picture book's mature theme is conveyed with unsophisticated first-person prose set in small black font. The Spanish edition of this picture book flows colloquially but leaves aside any vestige of the expressive narrative seen in native Spanish-speaking writers. The plot structure, appropriate for primary grade children, captures the situation of a family relying on predictability. The illustrations emulate the genuine nature of this narrative, using misty secondary colors that move naturally and support the prose beyond its words. One element persists over the pages: an orange pillow, an orange shirt, an orange pencil, and the full orange moon that comes back at the end of the story. VERDICT With simple vocabulary and prose, this picture book uses an age-appropriate narrative to introduce readers to the heartbreaking reality of many children. Ideal for public libraries and elementary school educators who can use this book as a read-along in a social studies unit.—Kathia Ibacache, Simi Valley Public Library, CA

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