Esperanza Rising

called Abuelita, lived with them and was a smaller, older, more wrinkled version of Mama. She looked very distinguished, wearing ...

ever-present aroma of garlic, face powder, and peppermint. “What happened to your finger?” asked Abuel- ita. “A big thorn,” said ...

were lopsided and the bottoms of her valleys were all bunched up. Abuelita smiled, reached over, and pulled the yarn, unraveling ...

Alfonso, Hortensia’s husband, was el jefe, the boss, of all the field-workers and Papa’s compañero, his close friend and compani ...

a young boy, Papa had taken him to parts of the property that even Esperanza and Mama had never seen. When she was younger, Espe ...

But now that she was a young woman, she un- derstood that Miguel was the housekeeper’s son and she was the ranch owner’s daughte ...

older stepbrothers. Tío Luis was the bank presi- dent and Tío Marco was the mayor of the town. Esperanza didn’t care how importa ...

Hehanded Mama Papa’s silver belt buckle, the only one of its kind, engraved with the brand of the ranch. Mama’s face whitened. S ...

eyes from the darkness. They tried to pass the time with small talk but their words dwindled into si- lence. Every sound of the ...

reins and Miguel the lantern. When the wagon stopped, Esperanza could see a body in back, com- pletely covered with a blanket. “ ...

“Estas son las mañanitas que cantaba el Rey David alas muchachas bonitas; se las cantamos aquí. These are the morning songs whic ...

Papa and his vaqueros had been ambushed and killed while mending a fence on the farthest reaches of the ranch. The bandits stole ...

today. I tried to deliver them to the kitchen but no one answered.” She stared at the man who had known Papa since he was a boy. ...

“He ordered the pa...papayas,” sobbed Esperanza. “I know,” whispered Hortensia, sitting next to her on the bed and rocking her b ...

and attentive to everyone, as if entertaining them gave her a purpose. At night, though, the house emptied. The rooms seemed too ...

from Mama, for someday. Finally, she opened the box she knew was the doll. She couldn’t help thinking that it was the last thing ...

in Alfonso’s garden, whose giant leaves spread out, encroaching upon anything smaller. The uncles eventually stayed each day unt ...

in Guadalajara, the table near the door that held Papa’s rose clippers and beyond the double doors, his garden. Her uncles’ pape ...

“Which makes things rather awkward,” said Tío Luis. “I am the bank president and would like to live accordingly. Now that I own ...

have been thinking of entering politics? I am going to campaign for governor. And what woman would not want to be the governor’s ...