Illustrator: Jonathan Rañola
Publisher: Lampara
Year of Publication: 2011
A Lesson from Juana
By Ghia Santos
The book is about young girls are
forced to learn how to weave and sew, while young boys are taught how to fish. But Juana is confused by weaving cloth and
sewing clothes. No matter how hard she tries, weaving and sewing were not the
kind of work to which her two hands were suited. Clothes that are sewn and
cloth that are weaved by Juana are too big, too small, too narrow, or simply
won’t fit. So he asked his father to teach her how to catch a fish, despite the
grunts and negativity of others. Teaching Juana was very successful. But she
didn’t put to waste what she learned about sewing and weaving. She sewed
blankets together, suspended from a frame that swivelled from left to right to
make their boat faster and easier to row. Juana was able to catch big fishes
unlike all the others.
The author, Becky Bravo, derived the
story from her own experiences. She wants to tell the readers that if you are
not good in one thing, you will always be good in another thing or two, that
there is something better on the other side waiting for you. You might not know
it yet but in time, you will discover those things.
In my perception, the book is also
about women’s ability to do men’s activities. Not only men can do things like
fishing, or other heavy duties and jobs that are not meant for women. Some
women are even better than men when it comes to leading. And everyone should
have the freedom to choose what they want. No can must tell them what to do
because it is the only way for a person to excel and bloom in that particular
choice.
I strongly recommend this book to
others because it has a clear, simple, and powerful message. Other than that,
the illustrations made by Jonathan Rañola, are very eye-catching and colourful.
It can really attract children’s attention. Find out in this storybook how
determination and courage really help in achieving one’s goals and dreams.
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