Esperanza Ortega possesses all the treasures a young girl could want: fancy dresses; a beautiful home filled with servants in the bountiful region of Aguascalientes, Mexico; and the promise of one day rising to Mama’s position and presiding over all of El Rancho de las Rosas.
But a sudden tragedy shatters that dream, forcing Esperanza and Mama to flee to California and settle in a Mexican farm labor camp. There they confront the challenges of hard work, acceptance by their own people, and economic difficulties brought on by the Great Depression. When Mama falls ill from Valley Fever and a strike for better working conditions threatens to uproot their new life, Esperanza must relinquish her hold on the past and learn to embrace a future ripe with the riches of family and community.
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"Great book. Lots of life lessons to be learned, especially for a 13 year old.My Son enjoyed the story."
— Dawn (5 out of 5 stars)
Pam Muñoz Ryan is the recipient of the NEA’s Human and Civil Rights Award and the Virginia Hamilton Literary Award for multicultural literature. She has written more than thirty books which have garnered, among countless accolades, the Pura Belpré Medal, the Jane Addams Award, and the Schneider Family Award. She lives near San Diego.
Trini Alvarado is an American actress best known for her feature film roles in Little Women, The Frighteners, and Paulie, for which she was nominated for an ALMA Award. Her television credits include series such as Finge, Law & Order: SUV, and The Jury as well as TV movies including Bitter Winter and The Last Dance. As a youth, she appeared as Melinda in the Broadway performance of Runaways. She has narrated several audiobooks, earning this praise from AudioFile magazine for her reading of Trickster’s Queen: “Happily, this book gets the narrator it needs in Trini Alvarado, who provides an extensive range of expression for both males and females, human or immortal, friend or foe. Her clear speech and judicious pace guide listeners through multiple intrigues to a satisfying end. A gem.”