The Best Gift of All:
The Legend of La Vieja Belén
El mejor regalo del mundo: la historia de La Vieja Belén
a bilingual book
by Julia Alvarez
with translation by Rhina Espaillat
(Santillana/Alfaguara Infantil, Bilingual edition, November 2008)
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La Vieja Belén is a legendary figure that only exists in the Dominican Republic. She comes on the Sunday after the Three Kings (January 6, Epiphany), bringing a simple gift only to poor children. Ever since I was a child, I've been intrigued by this old woman. Why was she doing this? Who was she? How did she get started? No one could tell me. Now, more and more, this munificent figure is disappearing from the Dominican panorama. Many Dominican children have never heard of La Vieja Belén, and needless to say, many Dominican-American and American kids haven't either. She has been eclipsed by Santa Claus and the onslaught of consumer culture. So, I decided to bring her back. As I set out to write about her, I couldn't find any answers to my childhood questions, so I made them up-- in verse! The best gift of all for me came when my publisher, Santillana/Alfaguara Infantil, decided to do a bilingual edition, English text and Spanish translation below, AND one of my favorite poets, Rhina Espaillat, who is a truly bilingual and a Dominicana-Americana to boot, agreed to do the translation. We were joined by a third Dominicano, Ruddy Nuñez, whose wonderful illustrations capture la viejita's mythical world. So there is a lot of D.R. power packed in this storybook! I hope you feel inspired by La Viejita Belén and keep her spirit alive, and not just on holidays!
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