Written by Erika L. Sanchez
This book is intense. It explores the reality of a second-generation immigrant who wants to create her own life instead of being bound by tradition, and shows how little you might know about the people you’ve lived with your whole life. Everyone has secrets, some people are just better at hiding them, or knowing when the truth doesn’t need to be shared.
The language and content are for mature audiences.
Review by Diane Eaton, English Teacher, West Lake STEM Jr. High
Rating: ★★★★★ (5 stars)
Interest Level: Grades 9-12
Perfect Mexican daughters do not go away to college. And they do not move out of their parents’ house after high school graduation. Perfect Mexican daughters never abandon their family.
But Julia is not your perfect Mexican daughter. That was Olga’s role.
Then a tragic accident on the busiest street in Chicago leaves Olga dead and Julia left behind to reassemble the shattered pieces of her family. And no one seems to acknowledge that Julia is broken, too. Instead, her mother seems to channel her grief into pointing out every possible way Julia has failed.
But it’s not long before Julia discovers that Olga might not have been as perfect as everyone thought. With the help of her best friend Lorena, and her first kiss, first love, first everything boyfriend Connor, Julia is determined to find out. Was Olga really what she seemed? Or was there more to her sister’s story? And either way, how can Julia even attempt to live up to a seemingly impossible ideal?
–From the Publisher
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
Written by Erika L. Sanchez
Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
344 pages
Release Date: October 17, 2017
An advance reader’s copy was provided by the publisher.
It would be great to add a diverse book like this to the library at Skyline.
Sending a copy your way. Thanks!
Would fit great in our Realistic Fiction area and with our student population of which 30+% are Latino.
Sending a copy your way. Thanks!
This book would be a great addition to our library. We have several students who deal with this very issue. It’s a hard transition at times to move forward in your own direction.