This is a beautifully illustrated book that uses rich colors to evoke a historic, familiar feeling. The illustrator chooses to zoom in on a poinsettia when the author describes the true flower vs. the colorful leaves. The history of the poinsettia follows its discovery by indigenous people and the original name given (cuetlaxochitl) as well as the medicinal properties originally attributed to it. The author does a great job with the research of the poinsettia's journey through historic events, such as Mexico's Independence, as well as folk stories about its symbolism with the birth of Jesus.

I thought it was important to point out that the colonizers renamed the plant and it deserves to be called by its native name, but this was not really touched on. They did report that it was renamed after a European American man named Poinsett. For anyone who has read the civil rights book, Spell Freedom, the woman who taught at a freedom school was the progeny of an enslaved person in Poinsett's household and she still carried his last name.

For children, this story was told at just the right level of non-fiction information and comforting familiarity. It would make a great read-aloud at Christmas time or when studying Mexican history.