Stories from Mexico/Historias de Mexico, Second Edition

By Genevieve Barlow and William N. Stivers

Enjoy the tales of Mexico--in Spanish and in English!

In Stories from Mexico/Historias de Mexico, we've placed the Spanish and English stories side by side--lado a lado--so you can practice and improve your reading skills in your new language while enjoying the support of your native tongue. This way, you'll avoid the inconvenience of constantly having to look up unfamiliar words and expressions in a dictionary. Read as much as you can understand, and then look to the facing page for help if necessary. As you read, you can check your comprehension by comparing the two versions of the story. You'll also find a bilingual vocabulary list at the end of the book, so you'll have a handy reference for new words.

Stories from Mexico/Historias de Mexico gives you the chance to

• Enjoy 16 well-known short stories that chronicle 1,500 years of Mexican history
• Fine-tune your language skills while gaining insight into the rich cultural heritage of the Mexican people
• Improve your reading and listening skills with free audio downloads of nine chapters from the book at mhprofessional.com

Genevieve Barlow and William N. Stivers are experienced Spanish educators and authors.

• Language: English
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
• Release date: May 1, 2010
• ISBN: 9780071702843

Book preview

Copyright © 2010 by McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

ISBN: 978-0-07-170284-3

MHID:       0-07-170284-9

The material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: ISBN: 978-0-07-170176-1, MHID: 0-07-170176-1.

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Bonus Audio Downloads

Audio recordings can be obtained from mhprofessional.com for the following titles:

Stories from Latin America/Historias de Latinoamérica

Stories from Mexico/Historias de México

Stories from Puerto Rico/Historias de Puerto Rico

Stories from Spain/Historias de España

Simply follow these easy steps:

1. Go to mhprofessional.com.

2. Search for Stories from Mexico/Historias de México

3. Locate Downloads underneath the book’s cover image.

4. Select story link to listen and/or download.

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Contents/Contenido

Preface

Prólogo

1. The Sun and the Moon

El sol y la luna

2. The Rabbit’s Ears

Las orejas del conejo

3. The Lion and the Cricket

El león y el grillo

4. The Sweethearts

Los novios

5. The Dwarf of Uxmal

El enano de Uxmal

6. A Bed of Roses

Un lecho de rosas

7. Atzimba, the Princess

Atzimba, la princesa

8. The Virgin of Guadalupe

La Virgen de Guadalupe

9. The China Poblana

La china poblana

10. The Friar and the Scorpion

El fraile y el alacrán

11. The Little Animal that Sings

El animalito que canta

12. The House of Tiles

La Casa de los Azulejos

13. The Mystery of Elm Grove Street

El misterio de la calle de Olmedo

14. The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter

La hija del torrero

15. Who Is Wise?

¿Quién es sabio?

16. First Prize

El premio gordo

English-Spanish Vocabulary

Vocabulario español-inglés

Preface

SIDE BY SIDE BILINGUAL BOOKS introduces readers to engaging stories in a bilingual format, in which both versions of the text appear side by side on facing pages.

Stories from Mexico/Historias de México explores the rich folk legacy of Mexico. The sixteen legends in this collection are in chronological order and span about 1,500 years. They include tales from indigenous peoples from the time before Columbus, as well as stories from the Spanish colonial period and later. The cast of characters includes gods and goddesses, animals, famous warriors, conquistadors, and explorers.

The legends are presented in accessible language in both English and Spanish so readers may gain valuable reading skills in their new language while at the same time enjoying the support of their native language. Comprehension may be checked in either language by comparing the two versions of the story, or by referring to the bilingual vocabulary list at the end of the book.

It is our hope that readers will enjoy these captivating tales as they explore the great cultural heritage of Mexico.

Prólogo

SIDE BY SIDE BILINGUAL BOOKS ofrece a los lectores unas simpáticas historias bilingües, en las cuales las dos versiones del cuento aparecen lado a lado en páginas opuestas.

Stories from Mexico/Htstorios de México explora la rica traditión folklórica de México. Las dieciséis leyendas están en orden cronológico y comprenden un período de unos 1,500 años. Incluyen leyendas precolombinas, historias del período colonial y cuentos más recientes. Los personajes incluyen dioses, animales, guerreros, conquistadores y exploradores.

Hemos publicado las leyendas de forma fácilmente comprensible en inglés y español para que los lectores puedan mejorar su habilidad para leer en su nuevo idioma, mientras siguen gozando del apoyo de su idioma materno. Es posible comprobar el grado de entendimiento comparando las dos versiones de la historia, y por medio de la lista bilingüe de vocabulario al final del libro.

Es nuestro deseo que los lectores disfruten de estas historias encantadoras mientras exploran la gran tradición cultural de México.

1

The Sun and the Moon

In almost all the cultures of the world there are legends that explain the origin of these two celestial bodies. This legend also explains why, in Mexico, one can see animal tracks on the moon. Other legends tell us that in Peru, a fox is in the moon, while in Spain, in Vietnam, and in the United States there is a man. How strange that the astronauts did not see any of them!

El sol y la luna

En casi todas las culturas hay leyendas que explican el origen de estos dos cuerpos celestiales. Esta leyenda explica también por qué en México se pueden ver las huellas de un animalito en la luna. Otras leyendas nos dicen que en el Perú un zorro está en la luna, mientras en España, en Vietnam y en los Estados Unidos hay un hombre. ¡Qué curioso que los astronautas no los vieron!

Before there was light in the world, the gods of Teo-tihuacan ¹ were talking among themselves, trying to decide who was going to give light to the world. All the gods were in a large room in one of the many temples. They asked, Who among us are willing to give light to the world? All of them knew that to give light to the world was not an easy task. It was going to cost the lives of those who decided to do it, for they would have to throw themselves into a great fire.

No one answered at first. Then, one of the youngest of the gods, Tecuciztecatl, spoke and said in a loud voice, I am willing to throw myself into the fire. Everyone said together, The god Tecuciztecatl is a great god! We all congratulate him.

But there had to be two gods and there was no one else among them brave enough to accompany Tecuciztecatl. He made fun of the others saying, Where is there a god as brave as I in the whole region? Isn’t there anyone willing to sacrifice his life to give light to the world?

No one answered. All of them kept silent for a few minutes and then they began to talk among themselves. During this discussion, there was so much noise and such moving about that no one noticed that a very old god got up slowly and stood in front of them all.

The old