Martí's song for freedom = Martí y sus versos por la libertad

Format:

Book

Title:

Martí's song for freedom = Martí y sus versos por la libertad

Other title(s):

Martí y sus versos por la libertad

Martí y sus versos por la independencia

Author:

Otheguy, Emma author translator

ISBN:

9780892393756

Edition:

First edition.

Publication:

New York : Children's Book Press, an imprint of Lee & Low Books Inc., [2017]

Physical Description:

1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 24 x 29 cm

General Note:

Contents:

Martí's song for freedom -- Martí y sus versos por la libertad.

Summary:

A bilingual biography of José Martí, who dedicated his life to the promotion of liberty for all men and women. Includes author's note, afterword, and author's sources.

As a boy, José Martí was inspired by the natural world. He found freedom in the river that rushed to the sea and peace in the palmas reales that swayed in the wind. Freedom, he believed, was the inherent right of all men and women. But his home island of Cuba was colonized by Spain, and some of the people were enslaved by rich landowners. Enraged, Martí took up his pen and fought against this oppression through his writings. By age seventeen, he was declared an enemy of Spain and forced to leave his beloved island. Martí traveled the world, speaking out for Cuba's independence. But throughout his exile, he suffered from illness and homesickness. He found solace in New York's Catskill Mountains, where nature inspired him once again to fight for independence. Written in verse, with excerpts from Marti's seminal Versos sencillos, this book is a beautiful tribute to a brilliant political writer and courageous fighter for freedom--From dust jacket.

Reading Level:

Ages 7-12.

1000L Lexile.

Program Information:

0.5 Accelerated Reader AR 5.3 190740.

Personal Subject:

Martí, José, 1853-1895-Juvenile literature.

Martí, José, 1853-1895-Spanish language materials.

Martí, José, 1853-1895 (OCoLC)fst00039529

Subject(s):

Authors, Cuban -- 19th century -- Biography -- Juvenile literature.

Statesmen -- Cuba -- Biography -- Juvenile literature.

Revolutionaries -- Cuba -- Biography -- Juvenile literature.

Authors, Cuban -- 19th century -- Biography -- Spanish language materials.

Statesmen -- Cuba -- Biography -- Spanish language materials.

Revolutionaries -- Cuba -- Biography -- Spanish language materials.

Geographic Term:

Cuba.

Genre:

Spanish language materials.

Bilingual books.

Spanish language materials -- Bilingual.

picture books.

Materiales en español.

Added Author:

Otheguy, Emma. Martí's song for freedom.

Otheguy, Emma. Martí's song for freedom. Spanish.

Container of (work): Martí, José, 1853-1895. Poems. Selections.

Container of (expression): Martí, José, 1853-1895. Poems. Selections. English.

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Independence Public Library	J 921 MARTI 2017	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Monmouth Public Library	J 921 MARTI 2017	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Newberg Public Library	J ESPAÑOL 921 MARTI, JOSE	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Salem Main Library	J 921 Marti, Jose 2017	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

A bilingual biography of José Martí, who dedicated his life to the promotion of liberty-abolishment of slavery, political independence for Cuba, and intellectual independence from colonialism for all Latinos. Written in verse with excerpts from Martí's seminal work, Versos sencillos .

Yo soy un hombre sincero
De donde crece la palma,
Y antes de morirme quiero
Echar mis versos del alma .

Martí traveled the world, speaking out for Cuba's independence. But throughout his exile, he suffered from illness and homesickness. He found solace in New York's Catskill Mountains, where nature inspired him once again to fight for independence.

Written in verse, with excerpts from Martí's seminal Versos sencillos , this book is a beautiful tribute to a brilliant political writer and courageous fighter of freedom for all men and women.

Author Notes

Emma Otheguy is a children's book author and a historian of Spain and colonial Latin America. She is a member of the Bank Street Writers Lab, and her short story "Fairies in Town" was awarded a Magazine Merit Honor by the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). Otheguy lives with her husband in New York City. This is her picture book debut. You can find her online at emmaotheguy.com.

Beatriz Vidal is an award-winning painter and illustrator, whose titles include Marti's Song for Freedom/Marti y sus versos por la libertad from Lee & Low Books. Her artwork has been featured in numerous exhibitions around the world, including the International Exhibition of Illustrations for Children in Italy and the Society of Illustrators in New York. Vidal divides her time between New York City and Buenos Aires, Argentina. You can visit her online at beatrizvidal.com.

Reviews (5)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 2-5-The life of poet, writer, and freedom fighter José Martí (1853-95) comes alive in this lyrical, bilingual retelling of his everlasting impact on the people of his native Cuba. Growing up, Martí was an admirer of nature and fell in love with the beauty of the Cuban countryside. As he traveled the landscape, he observed the cruel enslavement of the Cuban people on sugar plantations during the period of Spanish rule. When he saw the injustice of slavery in his homeland, he knew he had to fight for Cuba's independence and the freedom of the island's people. Inspired by the U.S. Civil War, and President Abraham Lincoln, Martí called others to action and was jailed by the government for doing so. But not even imprisonment could silence him. Martí traveled extensively throughout the world, spreading his message of social justice, freedom, and peace. During his exile from Cuba, he found inspiration in the natural beauty of the Catskill Mountains in New York. Here he wrote Versos sencillos, a collection of poems that came to define the struggle for Cuban independence. Otheguy pens this biography in a series of stanzas that mimic Martí's poetry, weaving together his vision of hope for the Cuban people with rich illustrations that pay homage to the vivid hues of his native land. VERDICT A sensitive and poignant tribute to one of Latin America's most important historical figures that will encourage readers of all ages to fight for freedom and peace.--Natalie Braham, Denver Public Library © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publisher's Weekly Review

Otheguy debuts with a bilingual story, written in gentle and measured verse, about activist José Martí, detailing his efforts to free Cuba from Spanish rule-and its people from slavery-by disseminating pamphlets and writing for newspapers. After being jailed and exiled to New York, Martí continued his campaign to liberate the Cuban people while finding solace in the Catskills: "the grass grew wild/ and seemed to whisper/ that Cuba still needed him." Vidal (Little Bek Longtail Learns to Sleep) uses a subtle folk art style in her detailed gouache illustrations, creating people who resemble terra-cotta figurines. Excerpts from Martí's Versos sencillos thoughtfully underscore this moving account of his crusade for justice. Ages 8-10. Author's agent: Adriana Domínguez, Full Circle Literary. (July) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Horn Book Review

I come from every place, / And Im on the road to everywhere: / I am art amid the arts, / And in the mountain chain, a link. The author of those words, Jose Mart, is a hero of Cuba and an important figure in Latin American literature. He was a freedom fighter born during the Spanish colonization of Cuba in the nineteenth century. As a boy, he witnessed firsthand the cruelty of slavery and colonialism; he would dedicate his life to abolishing slavery in Cuba and gaining Cubas independence. As an outspoken and passionate youth, his protests landed him in jail and later led to his exile from Cuba. As he traveled the world building support for his country, Nueva York (New York) became his new home until the pull of his beloved homeland became too great. Ever a poet, Mart found solace in the beauty of nature, especially in the Catskill Mountains: as Otheguy writes, In the mountains, there was freedom-- / the grass grew wild / and seemed to whisper / that Cuba still needed him). Otheguys verse is seamlessly combined with excerpts from Marts own Versos sencillos. Vidals gouache folk artstyle illustrations are soft yet evocative; they bring to life the rich countryside of Cuba with its palmas reales as well as the lush autumn foliage of the Catskills. This is a gorgeous bilingual tribute to the life of Cubas hero-poet. Back matter includes an afterword, an authors note, a selected bibliography, and source notes, in English and Spanish. alia jones (c) Copyright 2017. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Kirkus Review

Weaving in work from poet and Cuban freedom fighter Jos Mart, Otheguy presents a sensitive portrayal of the revolutionary. Told in stanzas paired alongside Domnguez's Spanish translation, Mart's life story faces detailed, evocative full-page paintings, some painful (Mart witnessed the horrors of slavery), others celebratory. While the pale-skinned Cuban's life contained many contradictions and political subtleties, the book focuses on Mart's love of country and ties it in not only to his writing work, but to a more literal love of a homeland: his affinity for nature that continued even when he lived in the United States in exile. "In the Catskills, Jos splashed in the waterfalls, / hiked through the helecho, / the ferns that lined the paths, / and admired the thick bark of the oak trees," Otheguy writes. If the text sometimes feels workmanlike, it's only because the included bits of Mart's poetry are so strong and searing. "I've seen the wounded eagle / Fly to the clear blue sky, / And I've seen the snake lie dying / From its own poison, alone in its lair." While it doesn't paint the most detailed picture of who Mart was as a person, it conveys enough of his fervent belief in Cuba's independence and where those beliefs took him in life to make up for that. In bringing an important life back into the conversation during divided political times, this book spotlights a steadfast hero and brilliant writer still worth admiring today. (Picture book/biography. 7-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Booklist Review

*Starred Review* Cuban poet and political activist José Martí witnessed an injustice at a young age and gave his life trying to right that wrong. He opposed slavery in Cuba and knew that the only way to end it would be to free Cuba from Spain's rule. Cuban American author Otheguy illuminates the life of a young man endeavoring to make a difference, through affecting bilingual verses that make Cuba's complicated history with slavery and colonialism accessible to young readers. By incorporating excerpts of Martí's writing into the narration, Otheguy introduces a new generation of readers to an important champion of human rights. Vidal's gouache artwork captures the beauty and the injustice of which Martí wrote, showcasing his country's vibrant colors, as in the pinks and oranges of the sunset, and illustrating the harsh treatment of enslaved Africans, who are shown performing backbreaking labor in sugarcane fields. Dominguez's excellent Spanish translation makes Martí's story available to a wide audience, and the text offers significant additional information via an afterword on Cuba's history, a selected bibliography, and excerpts from Martí's Versos sencillos. Otheguy and Vidal tell a timely story that will inspire many to fight for equality and sing songs for freedom.--Rodríguez, Sonia Alejandra Copyright 2010 Booklist