Can Esperanza Rise Above it All?

Esperanza is a young, wealthy girl who has the finest things and a happy life in Mexico. When tragedy strikes unexpectedly, she and her mother are forced to leave their home. They travel to the United States to look for jobs. It is the Great Depression, but they are lucky enough to find work as migrant field workers. This is a life that Esperanza was not prepared for, and the hard labor is more challenging than she had expected. She feels tired all the time and is having trouble being accepted by the other workers in the camp. There is so much to learn, and she can barely remember the life she used to have. Plus, she misses her abuela (grandmother) desperately. Will Esperanza be able to overcome the obstacles and struggles in her path? Will she ever see her abuela again? Is it possible for life to get better? This story will fill you with hope and make you see that hard times can transform us.
Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan is a story that has lingered with me long after I turned the last page. Each chapter of the story features a food that is harvested either in Mexico or California and it was fascinating to learn more about them. We read this book in school, and we celebrated Esperanza’s story by hosting a Fruitful Harvest for parents and students when we got to the end of the book. Each student brought in a Mexican “dish,” or a dish prepared with one of the foods from the story. The ingredients in the story are: grapes, papayas, figs, guavas, cantaloupes, onions, almonds, plums, potatoes, avocados, asparagus, and peaches. This was tasty and fun! I really enjoyed the characters and it was wonderful to see them evolve and change as the story progressed. I learned a lot about the time period and I also discovered what we can do with the unexpected ingredients in our lives. Sometimes you have to make what you are given into something brand new! I recommend this book to anyone in fourth through eighth grade, though adults will certainly love it, too!
Has anyone else read Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan? Or have you read another book by this author? We would love to hear your thoughts.
Happy Reading! ~L


FEAR NOT THE UNEXPECTED