Bluebonnets are synonymous with Texas where each spring you can see them growing along the highways. The Legend of the Bluebonnet is a beautiful book by prolific author/illustrator Tomi dePaola. It is based on an old legend of how the bluebonnets came to Texas. The story is about a Comanche tribe living through a terrible drought and famine. Crops are lost and people die. “Drought and famine are hardest on the very young and the very old.” The story is about one little girl who’s only possession is a warrior doll given to her by her parents, who have died in the famine. One day the Shaman tells the Comanche people that the only way to bring back the rain to end the drought is for someone to sacrifice their most precious possession. The only one who will do this is the little girl. When she throws her doll into the fire, the ashes spread and become bluebonnets growing on the land, and the rain comes soon after. Ever since that day, bluebonnets have grown in Texas. This story is beautifully written and illustrated, and I think it has many parallels for today as we struggle through a pandemic. Sometimes we are called to sacrifice for the good of others.
Today's Kidlit Book 