Esperanza Rising

In the distance, a caravan of gray buses and po- lice cars headed fast toward the shed, dust flying in their wakes. “Immigration ...

Several immigration officials accompanied by police began searching the platform, turning over boxes and dumping out field bins. ...

“What about their families? How will they know?” “Word gets out. It is sad. They leave the buses parked at the station until lat ...

anguish of the strikers. Troubled thoughts stayed in her mind. Something seemed very wrong about sending people away from their ...

besides, they were both citizens. They had every right to be here. She turned around and headed back to where the others were wo ...

saw Josefina with her hands on her hips, waiting. “Coming,” she called. She grabbed a bundle of bands and went back to work as i ...

Esperanza tried to go to sleep but the day spun in her mind. She was glad she had kept working and thankful that her camp had vo ...

this time. All the evidence of people she had seen before was there, but not one person was to be seen. Laundry waved on the clo ...

Something colorful caught her eye. Dangling from a tree branch were the remnants of the little donkey piñatathat she had given t ...

LOS DURAZNOSPEACHES N ow, along with her prayers for Abuelita and Mama, Esperanza prayed for Marta and her mother at the washtub ...

ribbons. The teacher will choose the best girl stu- dent in the third grade to be queen. And right now, I am the only one who ha ...

she silently shook her head no. “I have asked. They always find a way to choose a blonde, blue-eyed queen.” “But that’s not righ ...

the possibility of wearing the winner’s crown of flowers on her head. “I hate asparagus,” said Isabel, barely looking up from he ...

Esperanza looked at Hortensia. “Is that true?” Hortensia nodded. “They announced it at the camp meeting. The owner of the farm b ...

picked up a plate and a fresh tortilla and went to the pot of beans. His clothes were covered in mud that had dried gray. “How d ...

Oklahoma have families, too. We must all work at something or we will all starve.” Atemper Esperanza did not recognize raged to ...

“Anza!” She could hear him running down the rows, catching up with her. She kept her eyes on the tamarisk trees in the far dista ...

Miguel? Is it because they are the fairest in the land? Tell me! Is this life really better than being a servant in Mexico?” Mig ...

country. Maybe I must be more determined than others to succeed, but I know that it will happen. Aguántate tantito y la fruta ca ...

Do you have some prophecy that I do not? I have lost everything. Every single thing and all the things that I was meant to be. S ...