Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan

Ryan, P. M.  (2000).  Esperanza rising.  New York:  Scholastic.  262 pages.

Esperanza is used to living a charmed life in Rancho de las Rosas in Aguascalientes, Mexico, but tragedy forces her and her mother into a life she never expected to live.  Will she be able rise above it?

Esperanza always expected to live a comfortable life in Mexico with Mama, Papa, and Abuelita on her family's ranch in Mexico.  She's used to having beautiful dresses and servants to help her.  A tragedy involving Papa changes her life completely.  Now she and Mama are forced to leave their home and head for California, without Abuelita, to become farm workers with their former servants.  Esperanza is not used to the new living conditions, and she feels very inadequate, but Mama tells her that this is their new life now, and they must get used to it and make the best of it if they are to stay together and make it as a family.  Then Mama gets sick, and Esperanza realizes that she has to accept her new life and do what she can to help.  Esperanza learns to pitch in as a member of an extended family, and she is able to prove to herself (and her family) that she is strong and can take on whatever challenges she has to face.

I really liked this book, particularly because it reminded my of my grandpa's struggle to make a better life for his family (and for himself) by working as a migrant worker.  I liked seeing Esperanza change throughout the book.  Even though she was respectful to her elders, she kind of seemed like a spoiled brat who had it all.  I also saw this in her when she, her mom, and their former servants were traveling together, and a poor peasant girl saw that she had a beautiful porcelain doll that her father had given her for her birthday, and she acted as though the little girl was going to ruin her doll.  However, I liked how she accepted her new status when her mother got sick, and she readily went to work to help earn and save money for her family.  She learned that things do not always go as planned or as how people think they are supposed to go, and she had to do her part to help out. 

The title, Esperanza Rising, fits because Esperanza learns to rise above her situation and does what she could to be there for her family.  I think this would work for tweens and teens because they tend to be a little self-centered at times.  I think they would be able to relate to and empathize with Esperanza.  They might learn that even though some things might come easily for them, it may not always be that way, so they should learn to be helpful and do things for themselves.

Esperanza Rising won Pura Belpre Award.  It is also a winner of the Jane Addams Children's Book Award, the Willa Cather Award, and made the ALA Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults.  It was also a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and was on the New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing.  In addition, it was also on the Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year in 2000.  Other books by the author include Riding Freedom and Becoming Naomi Leon.

This is a photo of Pam Munoz Ryan, the author.