You can tell this is an issue Phyllis Whitney felt strongly about and that her knowledge of the situation came from first-hand experience, as she lived in both Texas and Chicago. When Christie Allard loses her mother and boyfriend, she goes to her father's hometown to recover. She hasn't seen her father since she was nine years old when her parents divorced, but he doesn't live there. She faces the family history and gets to know more and understand her grandparents and father, as their vegetable canning factory is what has held the small town of Leola together. Her aunt is traditional, but the minister and female missionary who live in the home are trying to break down prejudice against the Mexican-Americans who labor in the fields. Christie gets pulled into the battle as she comes to know them and understand their plight. A battle between her and her aunt ensues, ending at the time her father arrives on the scene. A romance slowly blossoms between her and the newspaper reporter who interviewed her, but I kept hoping she'd go for the company manager. Whitney is definitely at her best in Romantic Suspense, but of all her books that aren't suspense, I like this one the best. It is a good book for young people who need to understand the history and prejudice against the Mexican-Americans. ( )