Esperanza Rising by Ram Munoz Ryan was a bit of a cliffhanger for me but was a beautiful work of writing. The story takes us back to about 1920-1930 in Mexico with a young thirteen year old as our main character. Daughter of a wealthy farmer, Esperanza has it all: friends, family, wealth, beautiful clothes and a boy she wants to marry. When her father takes longer than normal to get home, things go downhill. Fast. Only a few days afterwards, the entire farm gets burned down to the ground. Deciding it best to flee, Esperanza and a few others go to America where they might work and get their feet back on the ground. Now in one of the work farms, Esperanza gets her first taste of America as she starts to live in California and has to WORK for money. Will things turn out well for her and the family? Or will the strikers make things even harder than they were before?
