Dona Flor:

A Tall Tale About

a Giant Woman

with a Great Big

Heart

   by

     Pat Mora

         Illustrated by 

         Raul Colon

Pura Belpre Award – 2006 Medal Winner for Illustration

Mora, P. (2005). Dona flor: a tall tale about a giant woman with a

 great big heart. New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf.

EXPOSITION: When Dona Flor was a baby, her mother used to sing a very special song that made her plants grow very, very big; and also made Dona Flor grow very, very big – as big as Paul Bunyon.  But she when she grew up, her heart was as big as the rest of her, so she was kind, gentle and helpful to all the people in her little village.

CONFLICT: One day, the townsfolk became too frightened to come out of their homes because they heard a giant mountain lion growling in the distance, and they were afraid the puma would come and eat them.

RISING ACTION: Dona Flor decided to go and find the mountain lion and keep it from hurting her friends.  She could speak to the animals, so she asked them to help her find the puma.  They told her to go to the highest mesa she could find. 

CLIMAX: So, Dona Flor went to the highest mesa in the land.  There, she heard the mountain lion growling, and it was so loud that the sound made her jump up in surprise and give the sun a black eye.

FALLING ACTION: But when she looked, Dona Flor found that the noise was coming from a little mountain lion cub that was growling into a hollow log to make his voice sound big and scary.   

 RESOLUTION: She made friends with the puma cub and brought it home so everyone in the pueblo could see it was safe to come out again.  That night, Dona Flor made a bed out of clouds and had a good night’s sleep.

 

 

WAS THIS A WELL-ILLUSTRATED BOOK?  Raul Colon’s artwork was good enough to win the 2005 Pura Belpre Award Medal for Illustration.  His pictures have a textured look that gives the impression of being hand-painted on canvas.  And the images offer an authentic view of simple life in a pueblo that perfectly matches the nature of the story its characters.

PICTURE SOURCES:

culturalauthenticbooks.blogspot.com

http://www.free-extras.com
dalesdesigns.net
artistsnetwork.com