SPIRIT OF THE MAYA

Watered-down anthropology for young readers, subtitled ""A Boy Explores His People's Mysterious Past."" Garcia's first children's book revolves around a 12-year-old Lacando'n boy, Kin: Readers enter his daily life and then follow him to Palenque, where he explores tombs and pyramids and becomes familiar with his Mayan heritage. A short introduction and conclusion contain some facts about the Maya, but the format of the book is ill-suited for the presentation of information. It's not so much an ancestral journey as a realistic reproduction of the typical sight-seeing experience. Everything is very superficial: It's a surprise to learn in the text that Kin is sad, since the full-color photographs portray him in fairly high spirits; his final, swift acceptance of his roots seems strapped on to give the story closure, rather than arising from his discoveries.