The book for readers aged five and over tells the story of Martín de Porres, a brother in the Dominican Order in the seventeenth century who was canonized in 1962.

Born in 1579 in Lima, Peru, his mother was a slave and his father was a Spanish nobleman. Martin and his sister Juana grew up in the barrios where the poor and enslaved lived. When Martin was eight, his father, Don Juan de Porres, came from Ecuador to see his children for the first time. He hated the impoverished circumstances in which they were growing up, and took them back with him to Ecuador. As an apprentice to a barber, Martin helped save a bleeding man, who gave him a give of lemon tree seeds. Martin planted the seeds and, according to legend, the tree grew overnight, with lemons on every branch.

The author writes: “Word spread of the apprentice with the healing hands and wonderful lemon tree.”

When Martin was fifteen, he went to work at the Monastery of the Holy Rosary. He was allowed only to be a servant at first, because of his mixed race. Soon tales spread about this unusual boy - his skill with animals and especially his ability to heal people who were ailing.

After thirteen years, Schmidt writes, “every soul in Lima knew who Martin was: Not a mongrel. Not the son of a slave. ‘He is a rose in the desert,’ they said.”

So Martin was allowed to take his vows at the monastery. Stories about him grew in number and featured Martin’s seemingly divinely inspired powers. He lived 45 years after becoming a monk. Schmidt recounts in his Author’s Note that after Martin’s death, “he immediately became a figure of tremendous appeal for those in Peru who had resigned themselves to a hopeless life of oppression.”

Martin was beatified in 1837 and canonized in May 1962 - the first black saint in the Americas. He also became the patron saint of interracial relations, social justice, those of mixed race, public education, and animal shelters.

The highlight of this book is the luminous artwork by David Diaz. Deep and vivid colors saturate the pages and suggest both a folkloric style and religious imagery.

This book won major honors in the world of children’s literature: a Pura Belpré Illustrator Award, a designation as an ALA Notable Children’s Book for Younger Readers, and an honorable mention for the Américas Award. ( )

Intermediate. This book is about the life of Martin de Porres, who is the illegitimate son of a Spanish nobleman and a former slave. His mother tries to get him to be allowed into the priesthood, but they reject him at first, until they see all the miracles he performs. I don't think that I would teach on this book specifically either, but it does provide representation and information about important Christian people from a long time ago.

Martin de Porres: The Rose in the Desert, by Gary D. Schmidt goes over the life of Martin who was the son of a Spanish nobleman who was born into extreme poverty. This story is a biography of Martin de Porres through his journey into the priesthood. This is a very inspiring book and it shows his culture and what he had to go through in his life. I think this would be a great book to read in a Social Studies class showing students different backgrounds and cultures. ( )

This enlightening story illuminates the life journey of an illegitimate child who rose from poverty to sainthood. It begins by his mother bringing him into a cathedral, where an unpleased priest baptized him. His mother referred to the infant as "a rose in the desert" and named him Martin. At an early age Martin became an apprentice to a doctor where he discovered his gift of healing. He yearned to be in the priesthood but was denied because of his "impure blood" therefore he agreed to a life of servitude to the Monastery. Throughout his life he shared his miraculous gift of healing with animals and humans, both of poverty and nobility. He transformed from a life of anonymity to everyone referring to him as "a rose in the desert", just as his mother did. Eventually, he was allowed to take his vows into priesthood where he continued to share his gift and because of his life of charity he was canonized. ( )

This has been my favorite book so far, it challenged compassion and judgments of the community and Martin. I personally felt humbled about my everyday actions with people and animals after reading this book. I think that this book will be a great read for children to show them how you care for others and how good Karma can come around. I absolutely love this book. ( )