The Legend of the Poinsettia

by John Nichols

Like dePaola's story, Nichols weaves Mexican-American cultural traditions and landscape into a narrative about ordinary people discovering the extraordinary power of their own actions. Where Lucida learns that true gifts come from the heart, his characters find that small acts of defiance and community care reshape their entire world—the magical realism emerges not from fantasy but from how deeply people are connected to their land and each other.

by Jane Yolen

Yolen captures that same hushed, reverent quality dePaola brings to Christmas anticipation, but she does it for a winter night of owl-watching between a parent and child. The illustrations by John Schoenherr have that same luminous, almost sacred quality—both books understand that the real gift isn't the destination but the quiet moments of connection and wonder along the way.

by Isabel Allende

This is my surprise pick for you—it's a multigenerational family saga rather than a children's book, but Allende does something similar to dePaola: she uses magical realism to honor Latin American cultural memory and shows how small, seemingly insignificant acts of love ripple across decades. The way she writes about gifts, sacrifice, and what endures in a family mirrors Lucida's discovery that true beauty comes from selflessness.

by Robert D. San Souci

San Souci adapts a Creole folktale with the same respect for cultural storytelling that dePaola brings to Mexican legend. Both books feature a young girl whose kindness is rewarded in ways that transform her life, and both use folklore to explore what makes a person truly rich—the illustrations here have that same jewel-toned, almost stained-glass quality that makes the magical feel sacred.

by Ezra Jack Keats

Published in 1962, this older gem shares dePaola's gift for capturing childhood wonder through color and simple, profound moments. Where The Legend of the Poinsettia finds holiness in a gift to the Christ Child, Keats finds it in a child's solitary joy in fresh snow—both artists understand that the most beautiful stories are about noticing grace in ordinary things.