 Teachers across disciplines in middle schools, high schools and universities have adopted it as a way to implement multicultural literature in their classes.The novel reflects Hispano culture of the 1940s in rural New Mexico.Anaya's use of Spanish, mystical depiction of the New Mexican landscape, use of cultural motifs such as "La Llorona", and recounting of "curandera" folkways such as the gathering of medicinal herbs, gives readers a sense of the influence of indigenous cultural ways that are both authentic and distinct from the mainstream.