Malin Alegria

For me, this book was ok. I've heard that it is based largely on the author's personal experience, and therefore the details of the story are, I'm sure, entirely unique. It's one of several smart-kid-from-the-bad-neighborhood-goes-to-private-school-and-learns-to-love-her-culture stories that my students just love, love, love. In fact, the 8th grade girls at my school can't get enough of this book, which is a great recommendation for it. I found it a little less compelling probably because I've read Cuba 15, which is quite a similar story. It's also a bit like the movie Real Women Have Curves, in the sense that the girl is trying to find her way in two different worlds.… (más)

Crossing the Line highlights the life of the Garza family, their family dynamics and the relationship of the Garza sisters. Fabiola, the elder sister, naturally looks out for her younger sister, but this also seems like an expectation as Fabiola’s parents leaves her with the responsibility of making sure her younger sister does the right thing.

It was an interesting read and very insightful when it comes to culture. I didn’t find the story itself very surprising, but, I did find the characters and their cultural experiences intriguing. It’s also a very quick read and a book that can open the roads to many discussions about race, social class, gender expectations and sibling relationships.
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Estrella is about to turn 15. Her mother and aunt are feverishly planning her quinceanera, a party that Estrella dreads. She would much rather leave behind the old Estrella of the barrio and celebrate with her new friends at the private school she attends on scholarship. She reconnects with a boy from her childhood and falls for him but between her father and her private-school friends, she conceals her friendship with Speedy. Caught between her new school life and the familiarity of the barrio, Estrella learns that pleasing everyone isn't as important as standing up for herself.… (más)

Young adult. In Dos Rios, Texas, life is all about borders — and what happens when you cross the line.
Nothing is simple in a border town like Dos Rios, in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Even for high school students Fabiola Garza and her younger sister Alexis, whose parents run a local Tex-Mex restaurant, Dos Rios is full of borders — where you should go, who your friends should be, which boy you should date.
Dos Rios is also full of opportunities, but it’s a town divided, between the haves and the have-nots, the Whites and the Mexicans-Americans, the Texans and the Mexicans, the legal and illegal. But through it all, the Garza sisters have each other. Water can be crossed, but blood is the ultimate borderline — no matter what.… (más)