Nine Days to Christmas: A Story of Mexico

Author: Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida
Title: Nine Day to Christmas: A Story of Mexico
Illustrator: Marie Hall Ets
Genre: Children's picture book
Subgenre: historical, Christmas
Theme: A traditional Mexican Christmas.
Primary and secondary characters: Cici, her mother, Maria (her servant)
Awards and date of publication: Winner of the Caldecott Medal, 1987
Cici is very excited because Christmas is almost near. In Mexico the nine days before Christmas are celebrated, by a party every night called a Posada. This Christmas Cici's family will be hosting their own Posada. Cici is so excited, because this will be her very first Posada. Everyday she asks her mother and Maria if she will have a pinata for her Posada. They are not answering her, but they suggest that every Posada has to have a pinata. One day Maria's mom tells Maria she has a surprise for her and to get ready. Maria and her mom go to get her pinata for the Posada. They go to the market and Cici sees a bunch of pinatas hanging from the ceiling. She finally sees this star pinata, and she had to take it home. The day of her Posada she is sad, because everyone is going to hit her pinata until it breaks. She hides behind the tree as her pinata finally breaks. She is so sad, but she looks up at the sky and a shiny star tells her not to be sad. Since Cici chose the star for her pinata, now the pinata is a real star!

This book is a good book to explain to student how different cultures celebrate different holiday's. This way the students can realize that there is not just one way to celebrate different holiday's.