This books focuses on migrant Mexican workers and their fears of getting deported and sent back to the poverty they were living in. The Mexican family gets hired by Tylers family because his fathers leg is injured and he can no longer work on the farm. Tyler becomes friend with the migrant Mexican children and find a way to be friends despite their differences. This book is helpful for students to understand the real life scenarios that some families have to face because they want to provide a better life for their families. ( )

Soon after Tyler Paquette’s grandfather dies of a heart attack, Tyler’s dad suffers a serious injury in a tractor accident, and the family’s Vermont dairy farm faces foreclosure. Tyler has a hard time dealing with the drastic changes so his parents send him away for a month. When he returns home, he finds three men and three girls living in a trailer on the property. His parents explain that they hired the men to care for and milk the farm’s two hundred dairy cows. Tyler isn’t told that the men are undocumented migrant workers from Mexico. When his parents ask him to keep the Mexicans’ presence on the farm a secret, he thinks it has to do with his father’s pride or his parent’s fear that some other farmers will offer the farm workers a bigger wage to work for them. Tyler doesn’t know what to think when he finds out that the Mexicans are illegal aliens. He doesn’t like breaking the law, but he knows that without the men’s help his family will lose the farm. And, he has become friends with the oldest girl, Mari. He doesn’t want anything bad to happen to her, her sisters, her father, or her uncles. Tyler must decide where his true loyalties lie. Tyler’s perspective is told through omniscient third person while Mari’s story is presented through letters and diary entries. Mari’s mother returned to Mexico when her own mother became ill. Now, she is being held captive somewhere by coyotes. Mari must care for her two sisters and worry about “la migra” finding her family. She writes down all of her thoughts and worries because she has no other way to share them.
©2024 Kathy Maxwell at https://bookskidslike.com ( )

Mock Newbery 2010

This was definitely a disappointment for me. It was chosen by my colleagues as a Mock Newbery finalist, so I expected it to impress, but for the most part the writing was just blah. The author decided to tell half the story through letters, and then proceeded to fill the letters with clunky exposition that was completely unbelievable. Would an 11-year-old girl need to explain a Mexican holiday to her Mexican uncle? Or tell her mother how old her sisters are? I mean, just in general, Mari's letters only occasionally sounded like actual letters written by a believable character. Mostly they sounded like the adult author's voice.

I should say that the premise of this book is very interesting and well presented. Alvarez deals with moral ambiguity and multiple points of view skillfully. But her handle on the subject matter didn't make up for the clunky writing. There were lots of boring sections where I (I, a highly motivated, enthusiastic reader) put the book down because it couldn't keep my attention.

I will probably still recommend this book because it does pick up quite a bit at the end and the story of a Vermont farming community connecting with a troubled family of undocumented Mexican immigrants is timely, eye-opening, and ultimately uplifting. Also, it's nice when a book for young people has equally important male and female protagonists. Still, the writing was way too heavy-handed for me to see it as a Newbery contender.
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Immigration is the subject matter -- the hard, confusing, many aspects and terrors and possibilities that come from trying to navigate US immigration. Alvarez tells a story with a lot of heart, a lot of every day heroes, and an amazing amount of hope, given how devastating the reality for many families is right now. If you are looking for multiple viewpoints and a lot of room for empathy, this is a great book to read together and talk about.

***a teacher pointed out to me that there is an implied rape in the book -- this is true. I do not think that most kids will catch it -- the references are subtle and it is never explicitly discussed. ( )

This book is a great way to include diversity and Multiculturalism in children's books. The story is very meaningful and can teach young students about the struggles of immigration and Mexican farm workers.I enjoyed the story and it was something that was easy for me to relate to, I think I would have enjoyed reading books like this one when I was young as well. ( )