'Twas Nochebuena
By Sandie Angulo Chen,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Sweet bilingual tale of Latino Christmas Eve traditions.
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What's the Story?
'TWAS NOCHEBUENA takes place on Christmas Eve, but this isn't any ordinary celebration -- it's Nochebuena, when Latino families stay up late celebrating the holiday. The little girl narrating the story takes us on a Christmas Eve journey that includes her family's beloved customs, from making delicious tamales and playing Lotería to marching house to house for Las Posadas and attending a late Mass. With her extended family close by, the narrator enjoys a special Christmas Eve that incorporates Spanish vocabulary (there's a glossary and author's note in the back of the book).
Is It Any Good?
This delightful picture book captures beautiful Latino holiday traditions. Families who celebrate Nochebuena will be particularly touched by the story (even if your family may have slightly different cuisine or play different games), but everyone who celebrates Christmas will find this a worthy addition to the holiday bookshelf. Using the same structure of Clement Moore's classic Christmas poem, author Roseanne Greenfield Thong artfully weaves in Spanish words and traditions, explaining why in most Latino families, Christmas Eve and not Christmas Day is considered the main event of the holiday season.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what they learned about the Latino tradition (in this case, Mexican American) of Nochebuena.
If you celebrate Christmas, how does the celebration of Christmas Eve described in the story compare with yours?
Discuss your own holiday traditions. Which ones do you look forward to each year? Do you have favorite children's books that portray those traditions?
Book Details
- Author: Roseanne Greenfield Thong
- Illustrator: Sara Palacios
- Genre: Holiday
- Topics: Holidays
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Viking Juvenile
- Publication date: December 1, 2014
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 4 - 8
- Number of pages: 32
- Available on: Nook, Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: November 14, 2020
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