Other editions of book Emerald Lizard

Bank Street College: Best Children's Books of the Year & Parent's Guide to Children's Media Young Adults' Choice AwardLatin America today presents a complex tapestry of native, Spanish, European, and African influences. For the past three decades, Pleasant DeSpain has explored Latin America – its landscapes, customs, cultures, and especially, its stories. Here he presents his finely-honed retellings of traditional folktales, myths, and legends from a broad array of Latin American cultures: Guatemala, Haiti, Ecuador, Peru, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Venezuela, Uruguay, and Chile. The fifteen tales presented here are full of compassionate souls, tricks and humor, explanations of nature and geography – and always, fine storytelling. Mario Lamo-Jiménez's Spanish translation reverberates with the rich, vibrant quality for which Latin tales are known. These animal stories are wild with llamas, jaguars and lessons for readers. Oh my! Messages of courage, fairness and resourcefulness run rampant in these folktales.

For the past three decades, Pleasant DeSpain has explored Latin America – its people, customs, cultures, and especially the myths and legends. The 15 tales in this collection are full of compassionate souls, tricks and humor, explanations of nature and geography – and as always, memorable characters and places. Mario Lamo-Jiménez's Spanish translation that accompanies the English version reverberates with the rich, vibrant quality that has become the bench mark for the best stories from Latin America.

For the past three decades, Pleasant DeSpain has explored Latin America, its countries, countrysides, customs, cultures, and especially, its stories. While his repertoire of traditional world folktales includes narratives from almost every culture around the globe, DeSpain's talent shines even brighter when relating the legends from Latin America. His exploration of the heart and soul of this enormous region demonstrates his passion for Latin America and its people and their stories.