Funny Bones: Posada and His Day of the Dead Calaveras

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Tonatiuh, D. 2015. Funny Bones: Posada and His Day of the Dead Calaveras. (Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal Awards). Harry N. Abrams. ISBN-10: 1419716476.

PLOT SUMMARY

Duncan Tonatiuh is an innovative illustrator that integrates his art with tradition and culture to narrate historical events. In Funny Bones: Posada and His Day of the Dead Calaveras, Tonatiuh incorporates his Mixtec-modern art with well-thought out, clear and concise, literary informational text about Don Lupe Posada’s life. The biography narrates Posada’s life in Mexico since the day he was born, followed by the most important and life changing events in his life. Posada gained public recognition for his witty art, which conveyed political and social depictions of people portrayed as “calaveras”. He achieved great success through working and training employees in various print shop businesses throughout his lifetime in Mexico. The calavera illustrations left a mark in the Mexican world, but it wasn’t until years after his death that famous artists, like Diego Rivera, became interested in knowing more about the life of the man behind the calaveras. Posada’s life, illustrations, and fame lives on even after his death and has served as impactful inspiration for artists and creators from all over the world.

Awards and Honors:

·         Pura Belpre Honor Book for Narrative and Illustrations 2016

·         Tomas Rivera Mexican-American Children’s Book Award 2016

·         The Robert F. Sibert Medal Award 2016

·         Notable Books for A Global Society Book Award 2016

·         New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing 2015

·         New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2015

·         American Library Association Youth Media Award 2016

·         CSMCL: Best Multicultural Children’s Books 2015

·         Notable Social Studies (Biography Selection) 2016

·         Orbis Pictus Award 2016

·         Americas Award 2016

·         Kirkus Best Books 2015

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Funny Bones: Posada and His Day of the Dead Calaveras is organized in sequential form which helps young readers fully grasp every chapter and step in the life of Posada. The story almost serves as a timeline of the most significant events in Posada’s life from the day of his birth until the end of his life, and the after-fame success. Young readers will experience the history, culture, and traditions from Mexico dating back to the mid-1800s to early 1900s in this outstanding biography by Duncan Tonatiuh. Not only will readers be taken into a journey of the life of Posada, but they will understand Mexico’s history from a political and social point of view.

Tonatiuh is both narrator and illustrator in the biography of Funny Bones: Posada and His Day of the Dead Calaveras. He skillfully crafted the biography to tell the story of the life of Posada, but at the same time he provides information about the pronunciation of certain Spanish words and briefly explains the process of Lithography, Engraving, Etching, and makes references to other symbolic individuals from Mexico like Emiliano Zapata and Francisco Madero who contributed to the history of Mexico. He embeds historical images of Posada’s illustrations from the mid-1800s to early 1900s along with his own modern illustrations. Tonatiuh also translates many of Posada’s satires, riddles, and poems.

Although Tonatiuh does an incredible job at interpretation, judging from an adult’s point of view, he tends to give his own perspective of the calavera’s literal meaning which can be portrayed as biased to his experiences and opinions. For example, on page 27, Posada illustrates calaveras at war during the Mexican Revolution. Tonatiuh captions the illustrations with, “Was Don Lupe saying that sometimes calaveras are not a laughing matter?” He writes his opinion in question form to leave the rhetorical question as open interpretation, but children will not fully grasp that concept.

In conclusion, the end of the book offers the “author’s note” which provides extra information about El Día de los Muertos holiday and its origins. Tonatiuh also includes a glossary, bibliography, art credits, index, and the places where Posada’s art is displayed in the U.S.A.

EXCERPTS

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: “Tonatiuh offers a comprehensive look at the life of Mexican artist and printmaker José Guadalupe “Lupe” Posada, while providing a crash course in lithography, engraving, etching, and studying art. Posada is best known for his calavera images (featuring the skeletons associated with Mexico’s Day.” 2015

KIRKUS REVIEWS: “Tonatiuh skillfully blends his own distinctive style of digital collage and hand drawings not only to highlight events in Posada’s life, but also to add whimsical elements by introducing contemporary calaveras. He incorporates amusing, thoughtful exercises for young readers into the narrative, prompting them to interpret the messages behind Posada’s artwork.” 2015

THE HORN BOOK: “Appropriately, Posada’s own artwork also plays a prominent role in the book and provides a nice complement to Tonatiuh’s illustrations, especially in a series of broadsides that ask the reader to consider the relationship between art and politics in Mexican culture. The straightforward narrative incorporates biographical highlights and personal anecdotes, while extended sidebars illustrate the different processes of lithography, engraving, and etching.” 2015

CONNECTIONS

Library Activity: “Dia de los Muertos Holiday”- Decorate Library with student’s projects. Have students bring in decorated calaveras and offerings. Have a book display with related book titles.

Jones, C. 2013. Day of the Dead Activity Book. (Act Csm edition). Price Stern Sloan. ISBN-10: 0843173009.

Johnston, T. 2000. Day of the Dead. (First Edition). HMH Books for Young Readers. ISBN-10: 0152024468.

Greenfield, R. 2015. Dia de Los Muertos. Albert Whitman & Company. ISBN-10: 0807515663

Morales, A. 2015. Catrina's day of the dead: El dia de muertos de Catrina. (1 edition) Adriana Morales. ISBN-10: 099040661X

Book Club: Have students interpret some of Don Lupe Posada’s famous Calavera publishings.

Teacher Activity: History lesson or Spanish lesson on Mexican Revolution, include Posada’s controversial calaveras illustrations.

Parent Activity: Parent Assisted research on more of Posada’s famous calavera publishings.