Content: G.
BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Quijana is in 7th grade, and starting in a new school. She immediately connects with Jayden and Zuri and the three become fast friends. There's a lot going on in Quijana's family - she has a 3yo brother who is experiencing some sensory challenges; her grandmother Miller, who lives in Florida has recently been diagnosed with cancer; and the family is planning a Christmas trip to Guatemala to visit Quijana's Abuela. Quijana does not want to go - she doesn't speak Spanish and feels like an outsider with her Guatemalan cousins in Texas - what will it be like when she's the only one who doesn't speak Spanish? Even her American mother speaks fluent Spanish. She makes plans to run away to her Grandma in Florida just before the rest of the family goes to Guatemala, so they will have to leave without her.
There were so many pieces of this plot, it felt a bit much: the grandmother's illness, the little brother's problems, the troubles at school and the conflict with her father - who suddenly wanted her to embrace her Guatemalan culture - the music the clothes and the language. I would have appreciated Balcárcel picking 1 or maybe 2 and going into them deeper. I liked her portrayal of 7th graders - they acted like 12yo -13yo kids. I also appreciated the appendix, with Grandma Miller's advice and science notebook, and the quotes from Don Quixote.
Lisa Librarian
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