The Honey Jar

Nobel Prize winner and social activist Mench (The Girl from Chimel) here gathers 12 ancient Maya stories she heard as a child (according to the jacket flap) in this sometimes-opaque compilation. These metaphysical tales-especially the Maya creation myths-may seem obscure to younger audiences at first. The initial stories progress sequentially, explaining that when Grandfather Sun and Grandmother Moon were bored, they set creation in motion. They begot ""our mother, the Heart of Earth, and our father, the Heart of Heaven,"" who in turn formed the sea and, from clay, the land and animals. The alternating first- and third-person voice is initially awkward, but once readers distinguish the two and settle into the protracted narrative style (peppered with several Maya words), the latter selections unfold as entertaining pourquoi tales. These selections also impart universal values (respect for elders, hard work, gratitude, etc.), with the lessons stated at the end of the subtly humorous stories (with titles such as ""The Man Who Became a Buzzard,"" ""Twins Make Holes in Your Clothes and Send Ants"" and ""Why the Elders Are the Four Corners of the Earth""). Mexican artist Domi adds a strong native feel with her highly stylized paintings. Seeming almost abstract on occasion, the illustrations, with their flattened perspectives and fiesta-bright palette, play up the folk-art quality (in one, Mother Earth and Father Sky appear nude among the creatures they've created). Her artwork celebrates Maya people and their numinous beliefs. Ages 8-up.