Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué Rico!: Americas' Sproutings by Pat Mora

Mora, Pat. Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué Rico!: Americas' Sproutings. Ill. by Rafael López. New York, NY: Lee & Low Books, Inc., 2007. ISBN: 978-1-58430-271-1.

SUMMARY

Delve into the wonderful world of the fruits and vegetables that originated in the Americas with Pat Mora. In light-hearted haikus that tantalize the taste buds, Mora captures the excitement of indulging in delicious foods made from blueberries, cocoa beans, and many more sproutings from American soil. Rafael López's bright and richly colored illustrations spring out from the pages, complementing the excitement that radiates from each poem. Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué Rico!: Americas' Sproutings is a delight to read and read again.

ANALYSIS

In Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué Rico!: Americas' Sproutings, Pat Mora tosses together the fruits and vegetables native to the soils of the Americas with haiku verses and brief histories of the foods to create a delicious book of poetry guaranteed to awaken all senses. Each page is filled with action and image and color both in the poems and in Rafael López's brilliant illustrations.

Haiku poems may be little, but when skillfully written they can produce powerful images, as  Pat Mora shows in each of her poems. Her poem "Tomato," calls to attention the action and sensation when biting into a tomato: "Round roly-poly/squirts seedy, juicy splatter./ Red bursts in your mouth."  The image of the color red bursting in one's mouth perfectly captures the moment when first biting into a red, ripe tomato. In just three lines, the words of the poem creates an effective image of color, texture, and action combined into one delicious bite. In another poem that adds taste to words that never had taste before, Mora writes about the chile pepper. "Dad bites green mouth-fire,/laughs when tears fills his eyes, sighs,/¡Mmmm! This heat tastes good."  Those who have experienced the "green mouth-fire" know exactly what Mora means. Mora's haikus bring to life the exciting pleasures found in the good things that make food delicious.

 Accompanying each poem, Mora writes a little explanation about the history of the haiku's featured food. She tells the readers that the tomato plant is believed to have originated in either Mexico or Peru and at one time were thought poisonous, and she adds more interesting facts about tomatoes. The side note about chile peppers gives the various names it has in different American countries. She also describes the different types of chile pepper plants and the heat they produce. Mora's poetry book not only entertains the reader with tantalizing poems about food, it also informs the reader with interesting information about the historical origins of popular foods from the American continents.

AWARDS

Delaware Diamonds. 2008-2009. Nominee- Grades K-2, Delaware

Texas Bluebonnet Award. 2009-2010. Master List, Texas

SUGGESTED ACTIVITY

Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué Rico!: Americas' Sproutings would be a wonderful "poetry break" book when teaching an American History class. Topics of discussions could be about the plants that originated in the two continents  and their impact on world cuisine. The use of haikus in a book about American foods brings up an interesting topic about multicultural influences we have in the United States. Where else do we see combined cultural traditions in our country?

Have chocolate treats (students can bring them in on that day) during one of the poetry breaks and read "Chocolate" to your students. Make sure there is some for the teacher, too!

Fudge, cake, pie, cookies

Brown magic melts on your tongue.

Happy, your eyes dance.

Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué Rico!: Americas' Sproutings. cover illustration. Retrieved February 17, 2013 from http://www.flr.follett.com/search?SID=f5a7ae1307db7a5a897ec8fe601555b5