LA LLORONA/THE WEEPING WOMAN

The most beautiful young woman of her small town, María disdains the local youths as beneath her and uses her wiles to attract the handsome son of a wealthy landlord. After a while, however, the headstrong husband loses his interest in María and speaks of putting her aside for a wealthy replacement. In rage and madness, María throws their children into the river and becomes “the weeping woman,” who guiltily haunts the waterways and may even snatch away careless children who stay too long outside at night. Hayes’s version is perhaps the classic American version of the classic Latin American folk tale and has been available in its earlier form for 20 years. This new edition features much larger, full-color illustrations destined to make the story even more popular, as well as the direct narration in both Spanish and English. This belongs in every folktale collection, and libraries serving Hispanic children, especially those of Mexican descent, can easily justify purchasing multiple copies. (Folktale. 7-12)