De Paola, Tomie. (1983). The Legend of the
Blue Bonnet. New York: Putnam.
With no rain and people dying, a tribe
struggles to meet their needs and are going through difficult times. A little girl named She-Who-Is-Alone has lost
her parents who died from the famine. The Shaman of the tribe goes to the hill
top and listens to the Great Spirits so that they know what to do and the rains
can come and bring back life. When the
Shaman returns, he tells them that they have become selfish by taking from the
earth and not giving anything back. Therefore, they must sacrifice their most
valuable possession and burn it as an offering to the Great Spirits. It is only
then that the drought and famine will end. Everyone goes back to their tipis to
think about what the Great Spirits had asked of them. But the brave little girl
decided she would give up her most valuable treasure, her warrior doll. The following day rain came and bluebonnets
covered the ground. Now every spring, the hills and valleys of the land of
Texas are covered with bluebonnets.
This
old tale of Texas is fun to read to students when discussing about our state of
Texas during Social Studies. This will also expose them to the ways of life of
the Native Americans and part of their culture.
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