Pajaro Verde / The Green Bird

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Pajaro Verde / The Green Bird

Paperback(Bilingual)

$8.95

Paperback(Bilingual)
$8.95

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Overview

Pájaro Verde, the dream-like story of an enchanted prince and nine curious sisters, is now available in paperback. Winner of an IPPY award, Pájaro Verde tells of a green bird who proposes marriage to a young girl named Mirabel. She only has two eyes, but her sisters each have a different number of eyes, beginning with the oldest, who has nine, down to the youngest, with just one. Though they mock Mirabel and her mother forbids it, Mirabel’s steadfast vision sees past the bird to a handsome prince, and she marries him! What happens next can only happen in a fairy tale!

Bilingual storyteller Joe Hayes received an AESOP Accolade from the Children’s Folklore Section of the American Folklore Society for Pájaro Verde.

Product Details
About the Author

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780938317906
Publisher:	Cinco Puntos Press
Publication date:	01/01/2005
Edition description:	Bilingual
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.10(d)
Language:	Spanish
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Joe Hayes is one of America's premier storytellers. He grew up in a small town in southern Arizona where he learned Spanish from his classmates. As he got older, Joe began gathering old stories from the Southwest. Joe has earned a distinctive role as a bilingual storyteller. Antonio Castro L. was born in Zacatecas, Mexico and has lived in the Juarez-El Paso area for most of his life. He has illustrated dozens of childrens' books including Pájaro Verde and Treasure on Gold Street.

From the B&N Reads Blog

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Editorial Reviews

Gr 4-6-Fans of this master storyteller will recognize and appreciate the rich complexity of this traditional tale. In a postscript, Hayes tells readers that he created this story by combining many similar tales from the oral tradition of northern New Mexico. Those tales, in turn, bear kinship with the medieval tales of Spain. A girl named Mirabel (loosely translated as "Beautiful Sight") is her mother's only two-eyed daughter. Each of her eight sisters has a different number of eyes. One has nine, one has seven, another has four, and so on. When Mirabel accepts an offer of marriage from a beautiful green bird, the sisters and mother are scornful, for only she can see the true character of her suitor. Consumed by their curiosity, the siblings snoop around her new home and learn that the green bird is really an enchanted prince. Their jealous plots then cause the prince/bird to be injured and abandon his new wife. Mirabel searches high and low for her husband until she finds him and tends to his wounds. The reward for this loyalty and persistence is the traditional happy ending. The plot offers many twists and turns and multiple folklore themes. The illustrator offers a realistic version of Hispanic beauty, as the illustrator used real-life models for his characters. The Spanish text is masterfully rendered and is given its own space on each page apart from the English. This is a true classic in the making and belongs on the shelves of every library and bookstore. Maria Otero-Boisvert, "Criticas" Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Criticas

Derived from various oral traditions of medieval Spain, this tale is skillfully told by the author. A manipulative woman lives with her nine daughters, the oldest of whom has nine eyes while the second oldest has eight, and each of the remaining daughters has the number of eyes corresponding to her birth number. One day the daughter with two eyes meets a green bird claiming to be a prince under a spell. The bird asks the girl to marry him and live in his castle. She agrees. The prince warns her that if anyone comes to visit for the night, she must sprinkle the guest's bed with sleepy water so they don't wake up and see his transformation into a man each night. As each of her sisters come to visit, she complies, until the youngest daughter with one eye comes, and our two-eyed heroine fails to sprinkle the water. Her sister sees everything and tells her jealous family. The mother plots to kill the prince and take over his palace but luckily only succeeds in wounding him. Unfortunately the jealousy forces the prince away, and the heroine sets out on a journey to find and heal her prince. As the author states in an explanation of the story's origins, even the youngest of children sit well through a reading of the book, perhaps due to the constantly changing themes and challenges present. This book, with large full-page illustrations, offers a positive morality lesson on the dangers of envy and greed. 2002, Cinco Puntos Press,
— Ramirose Attebury Wendt

Children's Literature

"The Spanish text is masterfully rendered and is given its own space on each page apart from the English. This is a true classic in the making and belongs on the shelves of every library and bookstore." — Críticas, starred review
"With lush romantic paintings that are both realistic and magical, this bilingual retelling of a New Mexican folktale combines many mythical themes of enchantment and transformation…Heroes and monsters, horror and romance: a great read-aloud."— Booklist
"Pajaro Verde is an unforgettable picture book story for young readers and would be a welcome addition to any school or community library collection. "— Midwest Book Review
"This book, with large full-page illustrations, offers a positive morality lesson on the dangers of envy and greed." — Children's Literature
"Hayes’ prose is unfailingly smooth and accomplished, both in English and in Spanish, and whether read or told. The illustrations are large, detailed, and imaginative: a sound match for the story." — School Library Journal
"This week I read PAJARO VERDE aloud in three or four sessions. I could have read it all in one long session because my students were pleading for more when I stopped. Their eyes lit up with each new turn of the plot. You should have heard the gasps and silences." — Caroline Yeryomenko, bilingual teacher
"Joe Hayes, one of America’s best storytellers, has done it again. He tells another classical story…with mastery that only a master storyteller can do. Highly recommended for children 10 years and older and Southwestern cultural studies." — Reforma
"This sophisticated tale will appeal to older children and adults alike. It would be an excellent resource in a middle school or high school classroom…But most important, it could be read for the sheer enjoyment of a good story." — Review of Texas Books
"This is a charming, complicated and surprising tale that extols the virtues of faith, hope and persistence…A real gem, this book is a must-have for young readers." — Southwest Book Views

From the Publisher

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