Sandra Cisneros. 2002. Caramelo.
(Also fits into the Identity & Immigration themes.)
"The title comes from Lala's fascination with her friend Candelaria's skin color, which is caramelo in Spanish, or caramel in English; Lala notices the various family branches of her relatives have various skin tones, depending on their heritage. Anyone who has ever gone on vacation to visit a family matriarch can relate to the Reyes family trips from Chicago to Mexico City to visit the "Awful Grandmother." And anyone who lives among multiple cultures will also relate to Lala's experience as a member of at least two very distinct cultures: Mexican and American."
Ages young adult
Melissa Noeth (The ALAN Review, Fall 2003 (Vol. 31, No. 1))
(Also fits into the Identity & Immigration themes.)
"The title comes from Lala's fascination with her friend Candelaria's skin color, which is caramelo in Spanish, or caramel in English; Lala notices the various family branches of her relatives have various skin tones, depending on their heritage. Anyone who has ever gone on vacation to visit a family matriarch can relate to the Reyes family trips from Chicago to Mexico City to visit the "Awful Grandmother." And anyone who lives among multiple cultures will also relate to Lala's experience as a member of at least two very distinct cultures: Mexican and American."
Ages young adult
Melissa Noeth (The ALAN Review, Fall 2003 (Vol. 31, No. 1))
Alvarez, Julia. 2010. In the Time of the Butterflies. Algonquin Books, first published 1994.
"During the last days of the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic, three young women, members of a conservative, pious Catholic family, who had become committed to the revolutionary overthrow of the regime, were ambushed and assassinated as they drove back from visiting their jailed husbands. Thus martyred, the Mirabal sisters have become mythical figures in their country, where they are known as las mariposas (the butterflies), from their underground code names." - Publisher's Weekly, CLCD
"During the last days of the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic, three young women, members of a conservative, pious Catholic family, who had become committed to the revolutionary overthrow of the regime, were ambushed and assassinated as they drove back from visiting their jailed husbands. Thus martyred, the Mirabal sisters have become mythical figures in their country, where they are known as las mariposas (the butterflies), from their underground code names." - Publisher's Weekly, CLCD
Alvarez, Julia. 2004. Before We Were Free. Laurel Leaf, first published 2002.
"What is it like for a 12-year-old girl living under a ruthless dictatorship in the Dominican Republic in 1960? Alvarez draws on her own cousins' and friends' experiences to tell the political story through the eyes of Anita, whose father is involved in a plot to assassinate the dictator and bring democracy to the island." - Hazel Rochman (Booklist, Aug. 1, 2002 (Vol. 98, No. 22))
"What is it like for a 12-year-old girl living under a ruthless dictatorship in the Dominican Republic in 1960? Alvarez draws on her own cousins' and friends' experiences to tell the political story through the eyes of Anita, whose father is involved in a plot to assassinate the dictator and bring democracy to the island." - Hazel Rochman (Booklist, Aug. 1, 2002 (Vol. 98, No. 22))
Alvarez, Julia. 1997. Yo!
(Also fits into the themes of Identity, Immigration and Love.)
"Anyone who enjoyed Alvarez's How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents will surely want to read this follow-up novel. This time
Alvarez features one of the sisters, Yolanda, and does so entirely through the eyes and words of other people. ... In the end the reader knows Yo very well and has many laughs along the way."
Ages 16 to adult
Doris Hiatt (KLIATT Review, May 1998 (Vol. 32, No. 3))
(Also fits into the themes of Identity, Immigration and Love.)
"Anyone who enjoyed Alvarez's How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents will surely want to read this follow-up novel. This time
Alvarez features one of the sisters, Yolanda, and does so entirely through the eyes and words of other people. ... In the end the reader knows Yo very well and has many laughs along the way."
Ages 16 to adult
Doris Hiatt (KLIATT Review, May 1998 (Vol. 32, No. 3))