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A Seed in the Sun
A farm working girl with big dreams meets activist Dolores Huerta and joins the 1965 protest for migrant workers' rights in this tender-hearted middle grade novel in verse, perfect for fans of Rita Williams-Garcia and Pam Mu�oz Ryan.
Lula Viramontes dreams of one day becoming someone whom no one can ignore: a daring ringleader in a Mexican traveling carpa, despite her father's traditional views of what girls should be. When her family arrives for the grape harvest in Delano, California, Lula meets activist Dolores Huerta and el Teatro Campesino (the official theater company of the United Farm Workers). She discovers an even more pressing reason to raise her voice: the upcoming farm workers' strike, an event that will determine her family's future--for better or worse.
Lula Viramontes dreams of one day becoming someone whom no one can ignore: a daring ringleader in a Mexican traveling carpa, despite her father's traditional views of what girls should be. When her family arrives for the grape harvest in Delano, California, Lula meets activist Dolores Huerta and el Teatro Campesino (the official theater company of the United Farm Workers). She discovers an even more pressing reason to raise her voice: the upcoming farm workers' strike, an event that will determine her family's future--for better or worse.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published October 25, 2022
41 people are currently reading
2769 people want to read
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March 21, 2023Written in verse by award-winning author Aida Salazar,
A seed in the sun brings to light a little known chapter of history, and honors the work of activist Dolores Huerta. This fictional account of the farmworkers union is told through the voice of Lula Viramontes, who struggles to hold onto her dreams as she works the grape harvest in Delano, CA. This book has received several starred reviews, including high praise from Horn Book and it deserves a place in every library. I love Salazar’s dedication to bringing ignored history to life.
A seed in the sun brings to light a little known chapter of history, and honors the work of activist Dolores Huerta. This fictional account of the farmworkers union is told through the voice of Lula Viramontes, who struggles to hold onto her dreams as she works the grape harvest in Delano, CA. This book has received several starred reviews, including high praise from Horn Book and it deserves a place in every library. I love Salazar’s dedication to bringing ignored history to life.
December 24, 2022
If you're interested in hearing my full thoughts, check out my full review here: https://youtu.be/xdpQaKFD8dw
April 10, 2025
Great book
December 11, 2022
This was one of my favorite reads for the year! I found myself getting emotional while reading. Born and raised in the Central Valley, the fields surrounded me. While I felt a kinship for so many reasons, that is not why I found this book so powerful. I found it so powerful, because it just is. Not because I felt familiarity.
I do hope this book replaces the common classic of those who worked the fields of Central California. THIS is the story kids need to read. They need to see someone their own age living this very real experience.
I'm not even mentioning how beautifully written it is. While I think the writing itself was brilliant, the true gift for me was in the storytelling. I became part of the family while reading.
I do hope this book replaces the common classic of those who worked the fields of Central California. THIS is the story kids need to read. They need to see someone their own age living this very real experience.
I'm not even mentioning how beautifully written it is. While I think the writing itself was brilliant, the true gift for me was in the storytelling. I became part of the family while reading.
October 23, 2022
An incredible middle grade historical fiction book that tells the story of migrant farm workers in 1960s California and their fight for better wages, housing conditions and unions. Told from the perspective of a young girl who longs to find her voice and place in the world outside the one her father and society want to keep her in. I absolutely loved this, especially the author's note included at the end. Great on audio too! Much thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
December 12, 2022
This feels like it would be a great classroom read, or great for kids who are into historical fiction. The labor history is so important but the novel feels a lil didactic to me TBH, also I didn't looove most of the verse? like to me some novels in verse are beautiful and the poetry really adds to the story (looking at Kwame Alexander, Joy McCullough, etc) but sometimes it feels more like the author just didn't want to commit to full sentences.
but I'm glad this book exists and hope it radicalizes some kids!
but I'm glad this book exists and hope it radicalizes some kids!
November 19, 2022
This beautiful historical novel is told in verse from the perspective of a middle grade girl, Lula Viramontes. She and her family are migrants who work the fields to harvest the grapes in the 1960s, but now they are called "scabs" because they continue to pick the grapes while other farm worker's strike against the growers for higher wages and better living conditions.
Dolores Huerta's words about joining the strike movement touch Lula, but her father isn't moved by a woman's words. He is engrained in the machismo belief that women are subservient to men, but when he hears Caesar Chavez, he eventually joins the Delano, California strike movement and the family dynamics gradually turn for the better.
Salazar paints a vivid picture of migrant life in the 1960s, and the strike started by the Filipino community who encouraged the Mexican and Mexican American farmworkers to join them.
Hopefully, farmworkers who are essential workers for all the world are being paid fair wages and have better living conditions today because of the powerful voices of Chavez, Huerta and others. People who live in poverty must not be exploited--but be elevated!
Dolores Huerta's words about joining the strike movement touch Lula, but her father isn't moved by a woman's words. He is engrained in the machismo belief that women are subservient to men, but when he hears Caesar Chavez, he eventually joins the Delano, California strike movement and the family dynamics gradually turn for the better.
Salazar paints a vivid picture of migrant life in the 1960s, and the strike started by the Filipino community who encouraged the Mexican and Mexican American farmworkers to join them.
Hopefully, farmworkers who are essential workers for all the world are being paid fair wages and have better living conditions today because of the powerful voices of Chavez, Huerta and others. People who live in poverty must not be exploited--but be elevated!
January 18, 2023
I love books written in verse; it must be difficult to share a complete story in so few words. This would be a great book for grade 6 when students are learning about global issues. Being in a community where we have migrant workers, it is very relevant.
November 22, 2022
Probably one of the best books I've read all year.
January 2, 2023
This book should be required reading for every Californian! ¡Viva la causa!
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January 7, 2023A Seed in the Sun is a novel in free verse that provides readers with a greater understanding of the historical events of the migrant workers in California in 1965. I knew very little about this period in time and the conditions, challenges and hardships faced by the various ethnic groups working the farms. Lula Viramontes and her family arrives in California for the grape harvest as Lula is learning to find her voice and to speak up against her father's traditional views. Her life is not easy, with a father who can and has been violent in the past, who is trying to learn the nonviolent ways and teachings of Cesar Chávas. Lula's family is struggling as her mother gets sick from the pesticides used on the farms, and their father wants all his children to break the strike to help their mother, despite having their own dreams. Lula also meets Dolores Huerta, the labour leader working to change the working conditions of all the farm workers and responsible for the formation of the United Farm Workers, and begins to find her voice. A Seed in the Sun is a riveting coming-of-age story weaving historical events that are not well-known.
Keywords: Historical Hispanic/Latino Immigration, NIV
Similar Titles: Three Stike Summer, Front Desk, Efren Divided, Land of the Cranes
Keywords: Historical Hispanic/Latino Immigration, NIV
Similar Titles: Three Stike Summer, Front Desk, Efren Divided, Land of the Cranes
March 1, 2025
I liked the story and historical setting. The author does a great job of simply presenting the complexities of the Delano Grape Strike. The children main characters are awesome. I just wasn’t hooked by the plot line (was there one?) I mean the book ends before the strike does, which is baffling. I also have some problems with novels in verse, this seemed more like narrative prose with funky line breaks.
January 3, 2026
This novel in verse would be a good companion text to Esperanza Rising. There is one part of the story where there is the suggestion of a dangerous and abusive interaction between a farm boss and the protagonist’s sister, a high school girl. Nothing happens, but this moment, although honest, might mean that I reserve it for my older ms readers.
February 3, 2023
Aida Salazar nos muestra en “A Seed in the Sun” un tema controversial y muy real: la explotación de los trabajadores del campo que recolectan frutas, verdura y semillas. El libro habla sobre la familia Viramontes, familia hispana que trabaja cosechando uva en California en condiciones lamentables. La historia se desarrolla alrededor de 1965, cuando Dolores Huerta, César Chávez, entre otros, comenzaron el movimiento de protesta por los derechos de los trabajadores.
Lula es el personaje principal de la historia, ella es una de las hijas de la familia, la cual tiene un problema con su voz, tiene el sueño de ser “Ring master” de un circo ambulante mexicano, pues para ella, el ring master es quien tiene el control, la voz y la presencia más importante del circo. Este sueño le llevará a encontrar su voz y usarla para luchar en el movimiento de protesta.
A raíz de los pesticidas que eran rociados en los campos, la mamá de la familia enferma, agravando aún más la situación familiar. Aunado a esto, el papá tiene que luchar contra su vicio al alcohol, y aunque es un padre amoroso y da todo por su familia, su vicio hace que la familia le tema. Me gusta la forma en que Lula describe a su padre: “Papá is a cactus plant who lives in a harshest condition with a prickly shell and a desert flower who blooms only once a year”.
La familia se enfrenta a la dura decisión de participar en la huelga, que Dolores Huerta y César Chávez encabezan, o continuar trabajando, sabiendo que si deciden participar quedarán expuestos a ser echados de sus barracas, las cuales eran las “casas” (si es que se les puede llamar así) donde los contratistas colocaban a las familias, las cuales carecían de todo, incluyendo baños, además de no recibir el salario con el cual sobrevivían. Lula y su familia nos muestran lo que enfrentaron las familias que vivieron durante ese tiempo, las duras decisiones que tuvieron que tomar y sus consecuencias.
Durante la lectura del libro, me encontré con información que desconocía, como, por ejemplo, la existencia del teatro campesino, que era un teatro político con mensaje, organizado por un grupo de personas participantes de la huelga, el cual enseñaba a la gente la lucha y contra quien se luchaba de forma en ocasiones cómica, pero real. Este se presentaba ya sea en la parte trasera de una camioneta o en cualquier parte donde había reuniones o protestas.
Lula en una parte narra que la abuela solía decir “the earth loves us by giving us what we need to survive, we just need to learn to see it”. Y entonces Lula se preguntaba que, si esto era cierto, por qué no era posible comer lo que ellos recogían trabajando, recordando todas las veces que estaban hambrientos después de un día completo de trabajo, a lo cual, la mamá le contesta “because land has been claimed and not shared, though la tierra belongs to no one and because for some having enough is not enough”. Es triste pensar que estas familias después de haber trabajado de sol a sol, no pueden consumir lo que cosechan.
Lamentablemente, en muchas instancias, las condiciones de los trabajadores del campo hoy en día son las mismas que en 1965. Y me pregunto: ¿Será necesario que surjan nuevos líderes? ¿Qué se necesita hacer para que las condiciones de las personas que trabajan en las cosechas dejen de ser explotados, y reciban un salario y condiciones de vida justas? Desde mi punto de vista, las leyes deben ser modificadas.
El libro fue de mi agrado, es un libro no muy extenso, pero muestra a grandes rasgos lo que los trabajadores en esa época vivieron. Termino con las palabras de César Chávez, las cuales espero tengan el mismo impacto que tuvieron en mí cuando las leí…
“Every time we seat at our table at night or in the morning to enjoy the fruits and grain and vegetables from our good earth, remember that they come from the work of men and women and children who have been exploited for generations”.
Lula es el personaje principal de la historia, ella es una de las hijas de la familia, la cual tiene un problema con su voz, tiene el sueño de ser “Ring master” de un circo ambulante mexicano, pues para ella, el ring master es quien tiene el control, la voz y la presencia más importante del circo. Este sueño le llevará a encontrar su voz y usarla para luchar en el movimiento de protesta.
A raíz de los pesticidas que eran rociados en los campos, la mamá de la familia enferma, agravando aún más la situación familiar. Aunado a esto, el papá tiene que luchar contra su vicio al alcohol, y aunque es un padre amoroso y da todo por su familia, su vicio hace que la familia le tema. Me gusta la forma en que Lula describe a su padre: “Papá is a cactus plant who lives in a harshest condition with a prickly shell and a desert flower who blooms only once a year”.
La familia se enfrenta a la dura decisión de participar en la huelga, que Dolores Huerta y César Chávez encabezan, o continuar trabajando, sabiendo que si deciden participar quedarán expuestos a ser echados de sus barracas, las cuales eran las “casas” (si es que se les puede llamar así) donde los contratistas colocaban a las familias, las cuales carecían de todo, incluyendo baños, además de no recibir el salario con el cual sobrevivían. Lula y su familia nos muestran lo que enfrentaron las familias que vivieron durante ese tiempo, las duras decisiones que tuvieron que tomar y sus consecuencias.
Durante la lectura del libro, me encontré con información que desconocía, como, por ejemplo, la existencia del teatro campesino, que era un teatro político con mensaje, organizado por un grupo de personas participantes de la huelga, el cual enseñaba a la gente la lucha y contra quien se luchaba de forma en ocasiones cómica, pero real. Este se presentaba ya sea en la parte trasera de una camioneta o en cualquier parte donde había reuniones o protestas.
Lula en una parte narra que la abuela solía decir “the earth loves us by giving us what we need to survive, we just need to learn to see it”. Y entonces Lula se preguntaba que, si esto era cierto, por qué no era posible comer lo que ellos recogían trabajando, recordando todas las veces que estaban hambrientos después de un día completo de trabajo, a lo cual, la mamá le contesta “because land has been claimed and not shared, though la tierra belongs to no one and because for some having enough is not enough”. Es triste pensar que estas familias después de haber trabajado de sol a sol, no pueden consumir lo que cosechan.
Lamentablemente, en muchas instancias, las condiciones de los trabajadores del campo hoy en día son las mismas que en 1965. Y me pregunto: ¿Será necesario que surjan nuevos líderes? ¿Qué se necesita hacer para que las condiciones de las personas que trabajan en las cosechas dejen de ser explotados, y reciban un salario y condiciones de vida justas? Desde mi punto de vista, las leyes deben ser modificadas.
El libro fue de mi agrado, es un libro no muy extenso, pero muestra a grandes rasgos lo que los trabajadores en esa época vivieron. Termino con las palabras de César Chávez, las cuales espero tengan el mismo impacto que tuvieron en mí cuando las leí…
“Every time we seat at our table at night or in the morning to enjoy the fruits and grain and vegetables from our good earth, remember that they come from the work of men and women and children who have been exploited for generations”.
December 14, 2024
I read this book because it was on an award list that I like. It is a great historical fiction that tells about migrant workers and the struggle to get safer and better-paying positions. I loved learning about the time, the people, and the union workers--especially the political theater troupe. I didn't much care for the presentation in verse form. I am not averse to verse :) , but this verse wasn't as interesting as some. Some of it read like prose with weird line breaks. Lula's story is a great POV to see the strike from. She has to fight to get to go to school, deal with an abusive father, care for a sick mother, and keep her dream of having a voice from dying. I thought that her father doing a 180 behaviorally to stop being abusive and drinking was a bit far-fetched. I also wish the book would have gone a bit further so I could see the resolution of the strikes and such.
Lula and the family have to tiptoe around their father. It is sad to see how she craves attention and love from him only to be disappointed by him.
Lula's 'voice' problem was a bit on the nose. She was afraid to stand up for herself and had no say in the things going on around her--especially since her father doesn't want to hear anything our of a mere female. But her actually losing her voice for a long time due to an irritated vocal cord and pesticide is a bit too much. If the audience didn't get it, the author included her physically getting her voice back as she learned to stand up for herself.
Lula's mom was a beautiful soul and obviously cared a lot for her babies. I loved her assertion that their home was where their family was.
Lula finally stands up to her father about him denying them all their dreams because it doesn't fit his idea of what their family should be. I was so glad to hear her shout this!
I want to be one of the reasons Papa smiles.
Lula and the family have to tiptoe around their father. It is sad to see how she craves attention and love from him only to be disappointed by him.
Papa is a cactus plant
who lives in the harshest conditions
with a prickly shell
and a desert flower
who blooms
only once a year.
I didn't realize speaking up
for yourself took so much effort.
Lula's 'voice' problem was a bit on the nose. She was afraid to stand up for herself and had no say in the things going on around her--especially since her father doesn't want to hear anything our of a mere female. But her actually losing her voice for a long time due to an irritated vocal cord and pesticide is a bit too much. If the audience didn't get it, the author included her physically getting her voice back as she learned to stand up for herself.
Remember, mi'has. We are migrant farmworkers.
Like seeds, we carry home in our bodies. Home is
where we grow it, together.
Lula's mom was a beautiful soul and obviously cared a lot for her babies. I loved her assertion that their home was where their family was.
Why should we keep from doing what we love
because you say so, Papa? How can we be fighting for
justice for our people when there is no justice in our
own family?
Lula finally stands up to her father about him denying them all their dreams because it doesn't fit his idea of what their family should be. I was so glad to hear her shout this!
September 8, 2023
“The fight is never about grapes or lettuce. It is always about people.” -Cesar Chavez
👩🏽🌾
It’s 1965 and Lula Viramontes dreams of a life more than what she has, which is working as a migrant farmer for the grape harvest in California alongside her family. Things get worse when her father starts drinking more and her mother gets too sick to work, forcing the girls to work more and attend school less. When Lula meets Dolores Huerta and el Teatro Campesino she dreams of becoming a ringleader and organizer like them. They start raising their voice against the unfair work environments, pay and treatment of the farmers. Can Lula raise her voice loud enough to be heard?
🧑🏽🌾
What a beautiful MG novel in verse and the perfect title to start off #latinxheritagemonth I learned a lot about Dolores Huerta, Cesar Chavez and what happened during this time in history. I recommend this to any educator, but especially those who work with a Latinx population. I’m going to tell my Emerging Bilingual teacher about this one immediately!
CW: parental abuse, alcohol, misogyny, racial slurs, poor working conditions, illness due to poison
👩🏽🌾
It’s 1965 and Lula Viramontes dreams of a life more than what she has, which is working as a migrant farmer for the grape harvest in California alongside her family. Things get worse when her father starts drinking more and her mother gets too sick to work, forcing the girls to work more and attend school less. When Lula meets Dolores Huerta and el Teatro Campesino she dreams of becoming a ringleader and organizer like them. They start raising their voice against the unfair work environments, pay and treatment of the farmers. Can Lula raise her voice loud enough to be heard?
🧑🏽🌾
What a beautiful MG novel in verse and the perfect title to start off #latinxheritagemonth I learned a lot about Dolores Huerta, Cesar Chavez and what happened during this time in history. I recommend this to any educator, but especially those who work with a Latinx population. I’m going to tell my Emerging Bilingual teacher about this one immediately!
CW: parental abuse, alcohol, misogyny, racial slurs, poor working conditions, illness due to poison
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July 18, 2023Searching for a middle grade book about the 1960s farm strikes? (Looking at you, California 4th-6th grade public school teachers 👀).
A SEED IN THE SUN, which takes place during the Filipino/Mexican 1965 grape strike in Delano, CA, is one of those books in verse that kids might not necessarily pick up on their own, but which could be a great tool for social studies teachers to use as an interdisciplinary read aloud.
With the guidance of a teacher, I think students would really be able to pick apart this story and deep dive into what has changed (or not) for migrant workers since the 60s. Honestly, the possibilities for tie-in projects and writing prompts are endless.
Seriously, if you're an upper elementary social studies teacher (or librarian), and especially if you work in a state that incorporates farm worker rights into the curriculum, this should be on your buy list for the upcoming school year.
A SEED IN THE SUN, which takes place during the Filipino/Mexican 1965 grape strike in Delano, CA, is one of those books in verse that kids might not necessarily pick up on their own, but which could be a great tool for social studies teachers to use as an interdisciplinary read aloud.
With the guidance of a teacher, I think students would really be able to pick apart this story and deep dive into what has changed (or not) for migrant workers since the 60s. Honestly, the possibilities for tie-in projects and writing prompts are endless.
Seriously, if you're an upper elementary social studies teacher (or librarian), and especially if you work in a state that incorporates farm worker rights into the curriculum, this should be on your buy list for the upcoming school year.
October 16, 2025
this is the first book in quite some time that I've chosen to stay up with and finish. it's a quick read and also... I just couldn't put it down. the poetry-like formatting, the characters, the real events that happened, the words I was looking up to translate and learn about!
I'm already looking for a gently used copy to buy online and keep on a shelf for our home library. it was beautiful.
I found this one organically, on a shelf at the library.
I'm already looking for a gently used copy to buy online and keep on a shelf for our home library. it was beautiful.
I found this one organically, on a shelf at the library.
January 4, 2023
This taught me about a piece of forgotten American labour history and made me appreciate all the more the power of workers and the rights they've fought so hard for.
I love that this encourages kids to be interested in and aware of human rights and the fact that we have to fight for them to be recognized and progressed. And that BIPOC are too often left to fight for half of what white workers are afforded.
That being said, I did think that because the author gives so much space to develop the historical setting and conversation, it left something to be wanted in the actual narrative. The characters felt less developed than I would have liked and the story didn't go as far as I'd like outside of just historical events. If there had been more of an emphasis on the personal struggles, not just the political of the main characters, I'd have liked this even more.
But as it stands, this is still a heartfelt, emotional, informative middle grade novel-in-verse.
This pairs really well with a recent documentary I watched called Invisible Valley which in part tells the story of Coachella Valley's migrant farm workers and the lack of PPE and wage security they have.
content warnings: Moderate: Pedophilia, Chronic illness, Classism, Physical abuse, Medical content, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Labour exploitation, child labour, unsafe working conditions
I love that this encourages kids to be interested in and aware of human rights and the fact that we have to fight for them to be recognized and progressed. And that BIPOC are too often left to fight for half of what white workers are afforded.
That being said, I did think that because the author gives so much space to develop the historical setting and conversation, it left something to be wanted in the actual narrative. The characters felt less developed than I would have liked and the story didn't go as far as I'd like outside of just historical events. If there had been more of an emphasis on the personal struggles, not just the political of the main characters, I'd have liked this even more.
But as it stands, this is still a heartfelt, emotional, informative middle grade novel-in-verse.
This pairs really well with a recent documentary I watched called Invisible Valley which in part tells the story of Coachella Valley's migrant farm workers and the lack of PPE and wage security they have.
content warnings: Moderate: Pedophilia, Chronic illness, Classism, Physical abuse, Medical content, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Labour exploitation, child labour, unsafe working conditions
July 19, 2023
I always love a deep-thinking narrative verse novel. This one was harder to get started with, but the last half of the book read quickly. I have read a book similar to this as in topic (The Circuit), although that one was set about a decade or so earlier in time.
September 16, 2023
This was suuuuuuper excellent. Didn't pull punches in terms of the abuse workers faced. Loved the very purposeful emphasis on it being a multi-racial coalition, Dolores Huerta's contributions, and just the general message of young people being activists.
February 9, 2023
I like how the author had the families growth mirror the revolution.
October 18, 2023
So cute, writing was pretty, would recommend. Struggles with her voice, with her mothers illness, her fathers sexism and anger, pesticides and migrant workers rights. Another beautiful verse novel for the books! Lovely.
May 15, 2024
3.5 ⭐
Informative and insightful, great for a younger audience!
Informative and insightful, great for a younger audience!
September 30, 2023
Copyright year: 2022
Award: Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award and NCTE Award
Star rating: 4/5
Genre: Novel, fiction, and poetry.
Themes: Family, migrant workers' rights, the Delano grape strike of 1965, and farm workers.
Summary: Lula Viramontes dreams of one day becoming somebody whom nobody can disregard: a trying instigator in a Mexican voyaging carpa, in spite of her dad's customary perspectives on what young ladies ought to be. At the point when her family shows up for the grape gathering in Delano, California, Lula meets lobbyist Dolores Huerta and el Teatro Campesino. She raises her voice in the laborers' strike which will decide her family's future.
Classroom Use: This is a great book for middle school that can lead to a very powerful unit lesson. A social studies class can begin with bringing history behind low to no-paying jobs in America. Then you can have the students read this book in section while analyzing the emotions Lula and her family had. A great poem session can happen after the book is finished.
Award: Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award and NCTE Award
Star rating: 4/5
Genre: Novel, fiction, and poetry.
Themes: Family, migrant workers' rights, the Delano grape strike of 1965, and farm workers.
Summary: Lula Viramontes dreams of one day becoming somebody whom nobody can disregard: a trying instigator in a Mexican voyaging carpa, in spite of her dad's customary perspectives on what young ladies ought to be. At the point when her family shows up for the grape gathering in Delano, California, Lula meets lobbyist Dolores Huerta and el Teatro Campesino. She raises her voice in the laborers' strike which will decide her family's future.
Classroom Use: This is a great book for middle school that can lead to a very powerful unit lesson. A social studies class can begin with bringing history behind low to no-paying jobs in America. Then you can have the students read this book in section while analyzing the emotions Lula and her family had. A great poem session can happen after the book is finished.
January 30, 2025
Such a fantastic book written in verse. Speaks on the prevalence of machismo in the Hispanic community. Talks about immigration and the unfair working conditions/wages of immigrant farmers in the U.S. Although the author writes about difficult/strong topics, she embeds hope and perseverance throughout the book.
"They tried to bury us but they didn't know we were seeds. -Mexican Proverb"
"Mama is quelite strong, a resilient green from which we feed from which we live and thrive in happiness and love despite it all."
"They tried to bury us but they didn't know we were seeds. -Mexican Proverb"
"Mama is quelite strong, a resilient green from which we feed from which we live and thrive in happiness and love despite it all."
July 9, 2023
A moving novel-in-verse following migrant agriculture workers in Mexico during the 1960s, and the protest movement. I learned a whole lot about this era and workers rights!
November 13, 2024
This story was a window into what would be a mirror for many of my loved ones, and I'm sure that will be true for many of my future students. The struggle of unionization is one that I take a lot of interest in and have very strong feelings for, so this was a read that I really enjoyed. The story left me feeling very strong feelings from start to finish, with both positive and negative emotions. While not all students may be able to relate to migrant workers, the themes of financial hardship, abuse, or concern for loved ones are things that many students, especially in our area, will have experienced by the time they are able to read this book. I will definitely keep this in my library if I teach at the middle and high school grade levels.
March 22, 2023
As the book A Seed in the Sun by Aida Salazar begins, Lula is a girl with a weak, hoarse voice. It is 1965 and her family has traveled to California to work the grape harvest where the United Farm Workers strike has just begun. Lula is drawn to the migrant workers' fight and even her dad's ferocious temper and the worry she feels about her very sick mother cannot keep Lula from dreaming about standing with the strikers.
This lovely novel in verse is filled with so much teachable and captivating content! Leaders Delores Huerta and Cesar and Helen Chavez, the role of political theater, and pesticide poisoning all play a prominent role in telling Lula's story, and that of the struggling migrant workers. And readers will root for Lula to find a strong voice to fight for what is important and fair.
This lovely novel in verse is filled with so much teachable and captivating content! Leaders Delores Huerta and Cesar and Helen Chavez, the role of political theater, and pesticide poisoning all play a prominent role in telling Lula's story, and that of the struggling migrant workers. And readers will root for Lula to find a strong voice to fight for what is important and fair.
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