The Honey Jar - Hardcover

Menchú, Rigoberta

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0888996705 ISBN 13: 9780888996701

Publisher: Groundwood Books, 2006

Synopsis

The Honey Jar retells the ancient stories Rigoberta Menchú's grandparents told her when she was a little girl, and we can imagine her listening to them by the fire at night. These Mayan tales include natural phenomena narratives and animal stories. The underworld, the sky, the sun and moon, plants, people, animals, gods, and demigods are all players in these vibrant stories. Enchanting images by Domi draw on the Mayan landscape and the rich visual vocabulary that can be found in the weavings and crafts for which the Maya are renowned.

About this title

About the Author

Rigoberta Menchu Tum won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992. She lives in Guatemala and devotes herself to fighting for the rights of Maya Guatemalans and other First Nations in the Americas as head of the Fundacion Rigoberta Menchu Tum. She has received numerous international awards and honorary degrees and has also written Crossing Boarders: An Autobiography, I Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Woman in Guatemala; as well as two books for younger readers - The Girl from Chimel and The Honey Jar, both illustrated by Domi and published by Groundwood Books. The Secret Legacy is co-authored with Dante Liano, an eminent, award-winning Guatemalan writer who now lives in Milan. Dante Liano is an eminent Guatemalan writer and National Literature Award laureate. He currently lives in Milan, where he teaches Latin American literature. He is the author of The Man from Montserrat, The San Andres Mystery and co-authored of The Girl from Chimel.

David Unger received Guatemala’s 2014 Miguel Angel Asturias National Prize in Literature for lifetime achievement, though he writes exclusively in English and lives in the US. The Mastermind (Akashic Books, 2016), his latest novel, has been translated into Spanish, Arabic and Italian. In 2011 he published The Price of Escape (Akashic Books) and Para Mi, Eres Divina (Random House Mondadori, Mexico). Other books include Ni chicha, ni limonada (F y G Editores, 2009) and Life in the Damn Tropics (Wisconsin University Press, 2004). His short stories and essays have appeared in Delta de las arenas: cuentos árabes, cuentos judíos (Literal Publishers, 2013), Puertos Abiertos (FCE, 2011), Guernica Magazine (February 2016, April 2011, November 2007 and August 2006) and Playboy Mexico (October 2005). He has translated 14 titles including Popol Vuh, Guatemala’s pre-Columbian creation myth, and the work of Rigoberta Menchú (Guatemala), Silvia Molina (Mexico), Nicanor Parra (Chile), Teresa Cárdenas (Cuba) and Mario Benedetti (Uruguay), among others.

Domi's wonderful illustrations appear in many children's books, including the Napí titles by Antonio Ramírez; The Night the Moon Fell (La noche que se cayó la luna) and The Race of Toad and Deer (La carrera del sapo y el venado) by Pat Mora; The Girl from Chimel, The Honey Jar and The Secret Legacy by Rigoberta Menchú; and The Story of Colors by Zapatista hero Sub-Comandante Marcos. Domi is Mazateca and grew up in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Review

[A] delightful collection...The colours are vivid and brilliant, evoking a tropical atmosphere, and the simple images should appeal to all readers. (Resource Links 2006-06-06)

...an ideal compliment to a Maya/Aztec unit, and it is a desirable addition to any Latin American folklore collection... (Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books 2006-06-06)

...narrated in a fluid, lively prose that has a natural rhythm of its own, ideal for reading aloud...Domi's bright oil illustrations enhance the sense of plenty with their clear pinks, greens and blues, and their child-like images of first creatures. (Toronto Star 2006-08-01)

Each tale is succinct and clearly retold. [Domi] illustrates the tales in oils with a depth that communicates the ethnic nature and tone of the tales. (Library Media Connection 2006-10-01)

In this delightful collection, the author returns to her childhood and relates ancient Mayan myths exactly as her grandparents told them to her. The colours are vivid and brilliant, evoking a tropical atmosphere, and the simple images should appeal to all readers. (Resource Links 2006-06-06)

Menchu and Domi have created a true golden treasure that anyone with an interest in history, folklore, and culture will have to taste. (Multicultural Review 2006-09-01)

Menchu paints a rich world, filled with animals, nature and lessons that are never cloying or preachy as she introduces readers to a culture they might not be familiar with. (Calgary Herald 2006-04-06)

The stories...reflect a distinctive worldview, a broad awareness of nature, and a sense of humor. An impressive collection...that lends insight into the Mayan culture. (Booklist 2006-03-06)

Universal in appeal, this collection of 12 Mayan tales would be a significant addition to any libraries holdings. (School Library Journal 2006-06-06)

About this edition

• Publisher: Groundwood Books
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0888996705
• ISBN 13: 9780888996701
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 56
• Illustrator: Domi