CAMILLE, SKELETONS and the MATADOR MURALIST is a continuation of the Camille series of books that look at the cultures of different countries through the Arts. In this book, the Mexican culture and specifically the art and culture of the Mexicans living in Tucson, Arizona.Camille, a young artist who lives in Tucson, finds that her new neighbors are Mexican and have a daughter named Rosa who is her age. Both girls enjoy many of the same things but in particular the arts. When first meeting her new friend, Camille is introduced to problems many Mexicans face when migrating to the United States. While Rosa has come to the States legally, her family has stories of friends who entered illegally with the help of Coyotes. Rosa, herself, also faces some problems adapting to the American lifestyle. It is through their friendship that Camille becomes aware of the many Mexican traditions. She is told the story of the beautiful painting of the Virgin of Guadalupe that hangs in Rosa's house. She is introduced to some of the Mexican art in Tucson including the murals of the Mexican artist Salvador Corona. A former bullfighter, Corona had been gorged by a bull and was told he can never fight again. With the help of a friend, Corona learns to paint and begins a life of an artist painting not only murals but furniture as well. Corona's grandson, Arturo Artrade, is a friend of Rosa's mother. He brings the girls to the Bates Hotel, also known as the Mountain Oyster Club or Maker House, and shows them the beautiful murals of his grandfather. One of the murals will play a key part in this story. The next day, Rosa invites Camille to the Day of the Dead parade. Camille, having always been curious about the parade, accepts the invitation. She goes to Rosa's house to prepare for the celebration and learns to make sugar skulls and the beautiful bread for the ofrenda or altar that she prepares with Rosa and her mother. She learns the meaning of the ofrenda and how the petals of the marigolds help the spirits of dead relatives find the ofrenda. Rosa offers Camille a place on the altar where she can put a picture of her grandparents who have passed away. This makes Camille very happy as she misses her grandparents and wants to honor them as well. The parade begins on the day that Americans celebrate Halloween. Rosa is fascinated with the idea of Halloween and trick or treating. Halloween is only on one day while the Day of the Dead goes on for three days. Before the parade, Camille goes to Rosa's house to have her face painted as a skeleton and to dress in a special costume. Rosa explains to Camille how the art of the Mexican artist, Posada has influenced the way people dress and paint their faces for the parade. Before leaving, the girls are reminded to meet the rest of the Rosa's family near the Urn for the burning ceremony of the remembrances of their relatives. The girls then join the parade. Unfortunately, they get separated. While they had set up in advance to meet under Corona's mural but Camille feels Rosa may not remember how to get there as she is new to Tucson. While the parade is safe, a young girl roaming the streets along could be a target of the Cartel.During her search for Rosa, Camille passes another Tucson art treasure. The sculpture filled Garden of Gethsemane created by the native American, veteran and artist, Felix Lucero. Camille is fascinated but it is getting late and she must find her friend. I don't want to reveal the end of the story. This book and my other books make excellent teaching materials for Teachers who want to explore the art and culture of different countries. CAMILLE'S FAKES, my first book in this series, explores different concepts in the arts. CAMILLE'S GIFT, I wrote with the help of two Tibetan monks and looks at the arts of Tibet. CAMILLE'S DREAMING explores the Australian Aboriginal art and culture. All of these books can be found on Amazon.