Summary
This is a favorite from my childhood. A lonely Cherokee girl realizes to save her tribe from the famine and drought, she must sacrifice her one and only possession to the Great Spirit. She burns her doll and spreads the ashes. The next morning, everywhere the ashes touched a bluebonnet has grown. As thanks for her offering, the Great Spirit makes it rain. She is a hero for her people.
Analysis
This story uses beautiful colors to demonstrate the mood, feelings, and actions in the story. At the beginning, the people are struggling with drought and famine. During this part of the story there is no background color. It is very plain. When the story discusses "the Great Spirit" and the sacrifices that must be made, the background fills with blues and purples. The fire burns bright as she sacrifices her doll. Toward the end of the book, the background colors are gone again but the pages are full of beautiful bluebonnets. This legend is full of cultural markers as well. It demonstrates the beliefs of the Comanche Indians that lived in Texas. It shows through illustrations and the story their spiritual beliefs when they cried out to the Great Spirit. It also displays their homes and the trials they went through during rough Texas droughts.
Teacher lesson ideas can be found at the following sites:
http://www.the-best-childrens-books.org/The-Legend-of-the-Bluebonnet-ideas.html
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/legend-bluebonnet-extension-activities
http://www.mcsk12.net/SCHOOLS/peabody.es/uop2.htm
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