Book Review: Maria Orosa

Maria Orosa was a freedom fighter, scientist and inventor from the Philippines, as the subtitle of a children’s biography about her by Norma Olizon-Chikiamco describes her.

Born in 1893, Orosa was the fourth of eight children, and her father helped in the resistance to American occupation of their country after Spain’s rule there came to an end not long after she was born. She loved science and studied pharmacy at the University of the Philippines, then traveled to America where she studied chemistry.

Upon returning to her home country, she worked as a teacher and a scientist, and eventually led the country’s food preservation office, using techniques she learned in the United States to teach people to preserve their native foods like mangoes, pineapples and jackfruits. She also invented cassava flour and banana ketchup.

She and her “girls” developed hundreds of recipes using native fruits and plants, and she also invented a clay oven that allowed people to cook without electricity.

Like her father, she also helped freedom fighters. When the Japanese invaded the Phillippines in 1941, she sneaked food into prisoner of war camps inside hollow bamboo poles. She refused to flee Manila and was killed when an American bomb hit her lab.

The book tells her story in biographical form and includes memories from some of her relatives who knew her. The book also includes a recipe for freedom cookies, which were also shared with prisoners during the war and are credited with saving many lives. Read the book and make the cookies and talk about different ways that people can make a difference no matter what their skills are.

Maria Orosa is a lovely and inspiring book about using your talents and standing up for what is right.

About the book: 32 pages, hardcover. Published 2024 by Tuttle Publishing. Suggested retail price $16.99.

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Celebrating Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month

The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is important throughout Mexico and other parts of the world. Her feast day is Dec. 12, and the celebrations honoring her appearance to Juan Diego in 1531 begin a few days before that.

Whether you celebrate yourself or just want to share about the celebration at home or in your classroom, Las Mañanitas: The Beautiful Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good place to start. The book, by Ernesto Joel Vega Rosales and Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne, with illustrations by Dana Sanmar, tells the story of a family’s celebration of the feast day in both English and Spanish.

They prepare with a novena, which is nine days of prayers and preparations. The children, Lucia and Pablo, are given special outfits made by their grandmother that look like what Juan Diego might have worn when he saw Our Lady. The book describes the prayers that are made each day, such as a prayer for respect for life, for families and for the indigenous people of the Americas, to name a few.

As told in the book, Juan Diego was a native Mexican born near modern day Mexico City. His given name was Cuaauhtlatoatzin, which means “He who speaks like an eagle.” When he converted to Christianity his name was changed to Juan Diego, and as he walked to church he passed a hill called Tepeyac. One day he heard the birds singing especially beautifully and a voice called him to go to the top of the hill.

There he saw Our Lady of Guadalupe, who asked him to tell the bishop she wanted a chapel built in her name at the foot of the hill. The bishop asked for a sign that Juan Diego really saw her, and later she had him collect flowers that she blessed and take them to the bishop. When Juan Diego dropped the flowers, an image of Our Lady could be seen on his cloak, which is still on display in her basilica to this day.

The feast day is celebrated as mañanitas, which includes singing, indigenous music and dancing, and children presenting flowers to Our Lady. Juan Diego is remembered today as being humble, brave and faithful, and was the first indigenous American made a saint.

The book is colorful and tells the story in a clear way, and it’s fun to have it both in English and Spanish if you teach Spanish or speak Spanish at home or in the classroom. It’s a great way to learn the basics of the celebration and the story of Juan Diego and why he is still remembered today.

About the book: 40 pages, paperback, published 2024 by Loyola Press. Suggested retail price $14.99.

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