José Manuel Mateo

Visually intricate, Pedro’s single, large, black and white illustration is published in codex format (in homage to Mesoamerican history), with Mateo’s story in Spanish on one side, English on the other. The accordion-fold pages mimic the physical complexities of a boy and his mother and sister’s journey north from rural Mexico. The boy’s perspective reveals the emotional complexity underlying his family’s risk-filled decision. This quietly powerful narrative ends with an author’s & artist’s note reminding the reader that, “When they migrate, the children cannot themselves legally prove their name…. For this reason, we have created this book: to demand these children’s right to exist.”… (más)

Visually intricate, Pedro’s single, large, black and white illustration is published in codex format (in homage to Mesoamerican history), with Mateo’s story in Spanish on one side, English on the other. The accordion-fold pages mimic the physical complexities of a boy and his mother and sister’s journey north from rural Mexico. The boy’s perspective reveals the emotional complexity underlying his family’s risk-filled decision. This quietly powerful narrative ends with an author’s & artist’s note reminding the reader that, “When they migrate, the children cannot themselves legally prove their name…. For this reason, we have created this book: to demand these children’s right to exist.”… (más)

The design of this book is beautiful, although I wouldn't really trust a child with it because it seems a little fragile. The actions of the overall picture depicts the life of a migrant child, in a form called Codex. Rather than using separate pages, one long sheet is used and gathered into an accordion fold. In this book, one side is written in Spanish, and the other is translated into English. The issue of immigration is largely misunderstood. Some people defend their apprehensions about it by noting the competition for jobs that immigrants bring. The reality is that many people enter our country illegally to escape the poverty, mistreatment, and violence within their own countries. Still, illegal immigrants are forced to hide in the country in which they seek refuge. The construction of this book deliberately aims to represent the right for migrant children to exist rather than disappear simply because their illegal statuses limit their abilities to gain legal documentation.… (más)