The Gold Coin

by Alma Flor Ada, Neil Waldman (Illustrator), Bernice Randall (Translator)

Overview

Juan has been a thief for many, many years. So many, in fact, that he can't even remember what it's like to be anything else.
When he tries to steal Doña Josefa's gold, something strange begins to happen to Juan. His skin becomes tan instead of pale, his body straight instead of bent, and his mouth smiles instead of scowls. Juan also begins to remember things. He remembers eating good, home-cooked food, being among friends, and laughing.
When the opportunity arrives for him to take Doña Josefa's gold, another strange thing happens. Juan realizes he can't. Maybe he isn't a thief anymore.
Set against a Central American background, this is a story of love and faith in the human spirit.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780689717932
Publisher:	Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	03/01/1994
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,074,873
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	AD730L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Alma Flor Ada, an authority on multicultural and bilingual education, is the recipient of the 2012 Virginia Hamilton Literary Award, and in 2014 she was honored by the Mexican government with the prestigious OHTLI Award. She is the author of numerous award-winning books for young readers, including Dancing Home with Gabriel Zubizarreta, My Name Is María Isabel, Under the Royal Palms (Pura Belpré Medal), Where the Flame Trees Bloom, and The Gold Coin (Christopher Award Medal). She lives in California, and you can visit her at AlmaFlorAda.com.

Editorial Reviews

An elderly woman, Dona Josefa, sits in her hut, holding a gold coin. ``I must be the richest woman in the world,'' she says to herself. But unbeknownst to her, a thief, Juan, crouches at her window, watching and listening. When Dona Josefa leaves, Juan ransacks the hut but fails to find her treasure. Tracking the woman across the countryside, he misses her again and again--coming instead upon many people who have been helped by her. And when the thief finally does catch up with her, he is surprised to find that he, too, has been touched by her simple goodness. Set in South America, this beautifully designed book features an unusual, rewarding fable and Waldman's ( Nessa's Fish ) lovely, stylized watercolors. It's a rich collaboration, worthy of repeated readings. Ages 5-8. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

K-Gr 3-- Juan has been a thief for many years. He is pale and bent from creeping about at night, and that's what he's doing the night he peeks into Dona Josefa's hut. She is holding a gold coin and says that she must be the richest woman in the world. Then and there, Juan determines to steal that coin, and any others she may have. It is a decision that changes Juan's life forever. This gentle story of redemption, ably translated by Randall, is structurally at once cumulative and circular, and is ideally suited for memorization and telling. It will work well as a read-aloud, too. Waldman's clean, pale watercolors have an art nouveau feel, and are large enough to be seen at story times. Whether told, read to a group, or shared one-on-one, the tale of Juan's search for an old woman's treasure makes an important point in a concise and satisfying manner. --Ann Welton, Univ . Child De velopment School, Seattle

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