Soto, Gary. 1992. THE SKIRT. Ill. by Eric Velasquez. New York: Delacorte Press. ISBN 0-385-30665-2.
Plot Summary:
Miata Ramirez is riding the school bus home one day with her best friend Aly, they unfortunately are being teased by a couple of boys on the bus. This distraction has caused Miata to forget her beloved folklorico skirt on the school bus when she gets off at her bus stop. Miata prays Aly sees it but unfortunately Aly does not. Miata is to dance the folklorico dance at church on Sunday, the skirt was her mothers from when she was a child so Miata knows she's going to be in a lot of trouble if she can't get the skirt off the school bus before the dance. Aly helps Miata sneak into the school bus yard to look for the skirt and an unlikely friend helps keep Aly and Miata from being discovered as they are sneaking back out of the yard. Before the dance on Sunday Miata is presented with a special gift from her mother for the special moment of dancing the folklorico.
Miata Ramirez is riding the school bus home one day with her best friend Aly, they unfortunately are being teased by a couple of boys on the bus. This distraction has caused Miata to forget her beloved folklorico skirt on the school bus when she gets off at her bus stop. Miata prays Aly sees it but unfortunately Aly does not. Miata is to dance the folklorico dance at church on Sunday, the skirt was her mothers from when she was a child so Miata knows she's going to be in a lot of trouble if she can't get the skirt off the school bus before the dance. Aly helps Miata sneak into the school bus yard to look for the skirt and an unlikely friend helps keep Aly and Miata from being discovered as they are sneaking back out of the yard. Before the dance on Sunday Miata is presented with a special gift from her mother for the special moment of dancing the folklorico.
Critical Analysis:
The story of The Skirt is such an identifiable one for young children because all children go through a stage where they are very forgetful. It's a common trait among all children no matter nationality, race, sex, height or weight. Miata is a lovely girl who feels horrible about being forgetful, especially since her mother has repeatedly told her she needs to try harder at remembering and not forgetting. She doesn't want to disappoint her family, Miata has a wonderful, close relationship with her family which is portrayed multiple times in this book. They sit down to dinner together, they watch baseball games together and go out for ice cream. Miata's parents are very proud of their daughter for doing so well in school, the parents have instilled great values into their children. This is a wonderful representation of a Hispanic American family. There are many stereotypes about Hispanic families and this story portrays a loving, proud, hardworking family that wants the best for their children while also embracing their family heritage and tradition. The representation of the family heritage and tradition is portrayed through the folklorico skirt.
What I love about this book is that it incorporates Spanish words within the text. When Miata's family sits down for dinner they have carne del viernes. When Miata's father speaks he does so speaking English and Spanish which is wonderful because I'm sure this is very common in English and Spanish speaking Hispanic homes. This is a great, true representation of how they speak to one another. When Miata proudly tells her father she received an A on her spelling test his response is, "Que bueno, spelling is important. One day you will get a good job if you know lotts of words." This shows her father has bigger dreams for his children too. Because there are Spanish words within the stories text I wish there was a glossary of Spanish words that would give the proper pronunciation and translation for the word.
The illustration of Miata on the front cover of the skirt is lovely and exactly as I would have pictured Miata. I love the skirt fanned out so we can see exactly what a folklorico skirt looks like. There are pencil illustrations throughout the book too and they are all beautiful. The illustrations look a little dated due to the how the children are dressed in their every day clothes, styles have changed but other than that everything is well represented. The last image in the book is of Miata dancing in the folklorico skirt with a Viva Mexico sign and Mexican flags behind her. This is an accurate depiction of a Mexican celebration. There are not many descriptions of what Miata looks like or what her family looks like, it is depicted in the illustrations more than the written words.
What represents this book as a culturally accurate book more than anything is the description of Miata's mother in the kitchen cooking Mexican themed foods, Miata's father being a hard working man who loves to come home to this food, sit with this family as a proud husband and father and then watch his beloved Dodgers baseball games. One way you can tell Miata's father loves his family very much is he found a new job that would move his family out of the city in an apartment and into a home in the suburbs. He called them to the kitchen table to tell them what the plan was, like a good, supportive family they agreed with his plan. It's such a wonderful story of a loving father who just wants to give his family the best life he can so his children will have more opportunities than he did.
What I love about this book is that it incorporates Spanish words within the text. When Miata's family sits down for dinner they have carne del viernes. When Miata's father speaks he does so speaking English and Spanish which is wonderful because I'm sure this is very common in English and Spanish speaking Hispanic homes. This is a great, true representation of how they speak to one another. When Miata proudly tells her father she received an A on her spelling test his response is, "Que bueno, spelling is important. One day you will get a good job if you know lotts of words." This shows her father has bigger dreams for his children too. Because there are Spanish words within the stories text I wish there was a glossary of Spanish words that would give the proper pronunciation and translation for the word.
The illustration of Miata on the front cover of the skirt is lovely and exactly as I would have pictured Miata. I love the skirt fanned out so we can see exactly what a folklorico skirt looks like. There are pencil illustrations throughout the book too and they are all beautiful. The illustrations look a little dated due to the how the children are dressed in their every day clothes, styles have changed but other than that everything is well represented. The last image in the book is of Miata dancing in the folklorico skirt with a Viva Mexico sign and Mexican flags behind her. This is an accurate depiction of a Mexican celebration. There are not many descriptions of what Miata looks like or what her family looks like, it is depicted in the illustrations more than the written words.
What represents this book as a culturally accurate book more than anything is the description of Miata's mother in the kitchen cooking Mexican themed foods, Miata's father being a hard working man who loves to come home to this food, sit with this family as a proud husband and father and then watch his beloved Dodgers baseball games. One way you can tell Miata's father loves his family very much is he found a new job that would move his family out of the city in an apartment and into a home in the suburbs. He called them to the kitchen table to tell them what the plan was, like a good, supportive family they agreed with his plan. It's such a wonderful story of a loving father who just wants to give his family the best life he can so his children will have more opportunities than he did.
Review Awards and Excerpts:
“A light, engaging narrative that successfully combines information on Hispanic culture with familiar and recognizable childhood themes.” - School Library Journal
“Light, easy reading . . . offering readers a cast and situations with which to identify, whatever their own ethnic origins.” - The Bulletin
"spunky and imaginative" heroine, Miata comes up with a clever plan to retrieve her beloved folklorico dance skirt. - Publishers Weekly
“A light, engaging narrative that successfully combines information on Hispanic culture with familiar and recognizable childhood themes.” - School Library Journal
“Light, easy reading . . . offering readers a cast and situations with which to identify, whatever their own ethnic origins.” - The Bulletin
"spunky and imaginative" heroine, Miata comes up with a clever plan to retrieve her beloved folklorico dance skirt. - Publishers Weekly
Connections:
- I love when family heirlooms are passed down from generation to generation, especially when they have to do with the families history and culture. I would present this book to children and then discuss family heirlooms and each child's family history. It could be turned into an art project with a younger group and have them write a small story and draw a picture of the item. By doing a project such as this one it would help familiarize the students with different cultures which is incredibly important.
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