The First Tortilla: A Bilingual Story

by Rudolfo Anaya, Amy Córdova (Illustrator)

The First Tortilla is a moving, bilingual story of courage and discovery. A small Mexican village is near starvation. There is no rain, and the bean and squash plants are dying. Jade, a young village girl, is told by a blue hummingbird to take a gift to the Mountain Spirit. Then it will send the needed rain. Burning lava threatens her, but Jade reaches the top of the volcano. The Mountain Spirit is pleased. It allows the ants in a nearby cave to share their corn with Jade. The corn was sweet and delicious and Jade took some back to save the village. Jade grinds the dry corn, adds water, and makes dough. She pats the masa and places it on hot stones near the fire. She has made the first tortilla. Soon the making of corn tortillas spreads throughout Mexico and beyond. Reading grade 3 and up

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Animals, Fiction, Folklore

32 pages, Hardcover

First published June 16, 2007

About the author

Rudolfo Anaya lives and breathes the landscape of the Southwest. It is a powerful force, full of magic and myth, integral to his writings. Anaya, however, is a native Hispanic fascinated by cultural crossings unique to the Southwest, a combination of oldSpain and New Spain, of Mexico with Mesoamerica and the anglicizing forces of the twentieth century. Rudolfo Anaya is widely acclaimed as the founder of modern Chicano literature. According to the New York Times, he is the most widely read author in Hispanic communities, and sales of his classic Bless Me, Ultima (1972) have surpassed 360,000, despite the fact that none of his books have been published originally by New York publishing houses. His works are standard texts in Chicano studies and literature courses around the world, and he has done more than perhaps any other single person to promote publication of books by Hispanic authors in this country. With the publication of his novel, Albuquerque (1992),Newsweek has proclaimed him a front-runner in "what is better called not the new multicultural writing, but the new American writing." His most recent volume, published in 1995, is Zia Summer.

"I've always used the technique of the cuento. I am an oral storyteller, but now I do it on the printed page. I think if we were very wise we would use that same tradition in video cassettes, in movies, and on radio."

from
http://www.unm.edu/~wrtgsw/anaya.html
and
http://www.gale.cengage.com/free_reso...

Reviews

[Saffron Moon · Rating 5 out of 5]

My rating is exclusively for Rudolfo Anaya’s really good folkloric storytelling. I greatly enjoyed this tale. However, although Amy Córdova’s art is very pleasing in it’s color palette, it is inconsistent in it’s overall composition throughout the pages.

[Vamos a Leer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story, with stunning illustrations and an endearing female protagonist, depicts the harvest season amongst a small, Aztec tribe. Readers will revel in the old legend, while learning of the need to respect nature and its resources. Best suited for ages 9-13, Anaya’s work tells the fictional tale of how a young girl’s courage saves her village from a terrible drought, and introduces corn to the peoples of Mesoamerica. Ultimately, the discovery of corn also leads to the creation of “the first tortilla“. The old legend, as well as Anaya’s rendition, reminds readers and listeners of the importance in giving thanks, and appreciating the land and the sustenance that it provides.

The story begins with our young protagonist, Jade, rising to greet the sun in her small, Mexican village. Her mother is “crushing dry chile pods in a metate” while her father is “weaving a basket” to later sell in the market. The scene is set with a visual description of the village, and its surrounding area. Nearby, a large volcano representing the Mountain Spirit towers over the people and their homes.

As Jade retrieves water from the lake, the reader learns of the village’s terrible and prolonged drought: “The beautiful lake was almost dry.” Many of the crops are in desperate need of water. As she continues working, a blue hummingbird comes fluttering past her ear: “‘You must go to the Mountain Spirit and ask for rain,’ the hummingbird whispered. ‘And you must take a gift’.” Jade recalls how her parents had warned her of the dangers of climbing up the steep volcano, but she also feels the weight of her village’s desperate situation, and is compelled to save them from the drought. As Jade is forced to make a difficult decision, she learns how to take care of her community while coexisting with the land– an important element in many indigenous cultures.

In the back of the book Anaya has included a glossary of indigenous Mexican words, such as elote, “an ancient Mexican word for ear of corn,” and rebozo, “a shawl worn by Mexican women.” Many of the words help depict the process of harvesting and cooking corn, such as metate, a “concave rock where corn is ground,” or mano, “a smooth rock with which to grind corn.” Corn was one of the most important crops amongst ancient, native peoples and, as Anaya remarks, “The cultivation of corn made it possible for the great civilizations of Mesoamerica to flourish.” Anaya even challenges readers: “How many products made from corn can you name?”

While this particular story explicitly draws from the Aztec legend mentioned by Anaya in his author’s note, it also subtly references the Native American, Iroquois legend of The Three Sisters. The legend of The Three Sisters anthropomorphizes the three crops of corn, bean, and squash as three inseparable sisters who need each other in order to grow and thrive. While Jade begs the Mountain Spirit for water, because the “bean and squash are dying,” readers who are familiar with the legend may surmise that something else besides water is missing: their third sister, corn.

The legend of the three sisters has many agricultural and nutritional motives, as these three crops are symbiotic, and grow best when planted together within the same plot of land. Additionally, they each provide vital nutrients, and together offer a well-balanced diet that sustained Native Americans in North and Central America for generations and generations. According to Renee’s Garden,

Corn provides a natural pole for bean vines to climb. Beans fix nitrogen on their roots, improving the overall fertility of the plot by providing nitrogen to the following years corn. Bean vines also help stabilize the corn plants, making them less vulnerable to blowing over in the wind. Shallow-rooted squash vines become a living mulch, shading emerging weeds and preventing soil moisture from evaporating, thereby improving the overall crops chances of survival in dry years. Spiny squash plants also help discourage predators from approaching the corn and beans. The large amount of crop residue from this planting combination can be incorporated back into the soil at the end of the season, to build up the organic matter and improve its structure.

This legend not only reflects the important symbiotic relationships amongst nature’s elements, and the teleological design of the ecosystem, but also, in a more metaphorical sense, the interdependency between individuals and the community. As Jade discovers the first stalk of corn and learns how to make the first tortilla she gains knowledge and skills that will serve her tribe for generations to come.

For access to the complete review and additional resources, check out our Vamos a Leer blog at teachinglatinamericathroughliterature.com.

[Jim Sibigtroth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a bilingual story where English and Spanish are placed adjacent to each other. It also contains a glossary where several Spanish words are explained. This is useful when beginning readers are learning about the parts of a book. The story shows how corn can be ground into flour with a stone matate. It shows corn kernels in yellow, blue, white, and red so I bring some ears of real Indian corn to show the students that wild corn isn't just yellow like they are used to. The young girl in the story demonstrates positive character traits including concern for others (she is worried that drought has made food scarce), risk-taking (she climbs a mountain to seek a solution), respect (she takes an offering to the mountain spirit and addresses him respectfully), sharing (she teaches the rest of the villagers about the corn and how to make it into tortillas).
There are often Spanish-speaking students in the classes I read to (and I have no skill in speaking Spanish) so I let some of these students explain how to pronounce some of the Spanish words and when they can I have them explain some of these words to their peers. This is empowering for these students and shows the whole class that we can learn from anyone regardless of age.

[Juanita Serna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great book for a a read aloud. The first tortilla is about a young girl who has to go up a mountain to talk to the Mountain Spirit and ask for rain. Her small Mexican village is near starvation and without the rain, they will all have to move. After many obstacles she reaches the top of the volcanoes and gifts the Mountain Spirit a gift. The Mountain Spirit leads the way to a cave where corn is grown. She takes some corn back with her and plants it. She then grinds the rest, mixes it with water, pats it, and makes the first tortilla in Mexico. The Mountain Spirit is pleased and sends water. More and More corn is grown and every year the people of the town honor the Mountain Spirit. This story is very interesting and developmentally appropriate for elementary aged school children. I would read this to a 3rd or 4th grade class. The genre is Folklore as this is a myth about how the first tortilla was made.

[Cassandra Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the story of Jade who travels to the top of a volcano to present corn kernals to the Mountain spirit who is angry at the lack of honor given to him by the people of the village. Jade is instructed by a hummingbird to present this gift to end the drought that the Mountain spirit has plagued her village with. When the rain returns and the corn blooms, Jade uses the crop mixed with water to create the first tortilla. This book closely mirrors books such as The Legend of The Bluebonnet and The Legend of The Indian Paintbrush and is a great resource to add to any classroom library.

[Jessica Valdez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was great! I definitely believe that it can be used for students from the lowest grades to the highest. The vocabulary was simple and refined, but the concept behind the story is what is so versatile. With the older grades we can utilize this book when teaching about cultivation. When using it for the lower grades, we can teach about family and perseverance. This was an all around good book and was a great read.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

The folk story of how a girl named Jade, during a drought in her village braved the climb to visit the mountain spirt to ask for rain. The gift she offered pleased the mountain spirit, and he gave her corn, and sent rain. From the corn Jade made the first tortilla, and saved her entire village.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy the idea it is sorta fictional but from a cool book with AMAZING artwork I think 4 out of 5

[Hunter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book great story

[Dusty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, so I am deeply committed to Anaya's magnum opus, Bless Me, Ultima, and am even teaching it to my classes of ninth grade students here on the US-Mexico border. Anaya is an original, insightful, lyrical, masterful writer. I picked up The First Tortilla because I was drawn to its illustrations and because I thought it might prove an interesting discussion piece in my classroom as my students delve into Ultima.

Tortilla is about a young Mexican girl who pleases the amorphous "Mountain God" and in reward is allowed to bring corn to her starving people. That her people are starving is hard to believe given Amy Córdova'a radiant paintings and the fact that Anaya does not mention how the girl's people are in dire straits until the girl has nearly finished her quest up the rocky mountain. The story's narrative is dreamlike in how its details unravel casually but after they are needed. Seems like Anaya authored this book without a clear idea of where it was headed and just kept changing his mind as he moved from page to page.

My students will soon be composing their own fables, and I plan to use this picture book as an example for them to model. It is probably not much better than any of the fables my students will write.

But, like I said, the pictures are beautiful.

[Sheila Rocha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely and magical! An Anaya addition to a children's library. He reclaims an ancient story and vivifies the imagery of indigenous Mexico through word and the rich layers of color and form by artist/illustrator Amy Cordova. Cordova manifests the visual elements of the story through the eyes of a child.

[Barbara Lovejoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a DELIGHTFUL book! I had read 2 or 3 times the book Bless Me, Ultima--in English and Spanish--written for adults by this author and had so thoroughly enjoyed it that I looked forward to reading this book written for children. I bought this book to put in our Esperanza school library with money donated by one of our founding Esperanza board members.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book to my first grade class for a folktales thematic unit and I absolutely loved it and so did the kids. I pulled in a multi-cultural aspect since most of my students are hispanic and I love the fact that it has a heroine in it. Great book about family and culture.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great. This book is equally full of Spanish and English, translated well and has nice pictures. I'm not sure that this story is true folklore or not, but it certainly can be entertaining. Too long for a read aloud or bed time. imo.

[Tayelyn Calori · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. It gave an insight into what Mexican culture is really like. I loved how a child was the main character and how she was able to become a town hero just by creating a tortilla.

[Espen Lyshek · Rating 3 out of 5]

great pics for a great story a girl goes to a mounten to stop a drout.

[Jasper Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was good because the picture's are awesome.

[Kraig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the picture`s. But it was`nt my type.

[Mckinley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to read the spanish trying to understand the story.

[Wanda Soto]

This book its so interesting for my little sister (:

[Carolina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of writing. Great images. Good story for 4/5+

Particularly those with more Spanish instruction. The language is challenging and compelling

[Janine Darragh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the story line-- the legend of how the first tortilla came about, and the gorgeous illustrations support the text well.

[Aylin Mendoza · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's an adorable story and it's a great way of getting exposed to different cultures.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I love how the author incorporated some Spanish words into the book as well. It had great illustrations and was able to relate my beliefs and values throughout the story.

[Jose Cuevas · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heart-warming myth of how humans and nature can mutually benefit one another, through the form of a spirit.

[Juliana Chau · Rating 5 out of 5]

2005 A multicultural book told about a girl named Jade and what it takes to make tortillas, all while exploring tradition.

[Diana Valdivia-Rodriguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about the invention of the first tortilla in Mexico.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this folklore story about the gods giving corn to the Native American people. I liked the illustrations, and the brave young girl character.