During the Great Depression, times were bleak for most people, but especially for Mexican-Americans living near the border, as they were often used a scapegoat. More than 1 million Mexican-Americans, including 600,000 citizens were "repatriated" to Mexico, Author McCall tells the story of fifteen year-old Estrella del Toro and her family who are doing better than many on their ranch in southern Texas. However, racism is mounting in the local town, and some neighbors have "disappeared" (i.e., been deported to Mexico.) At a local town meeting, her father and Estrella speak out. When their home is burned to the ground, her father is taken by the police and Estrella, her mother, and sickly younger brother are taken first to Ciudad and then to Mexico City. They become refugees, barely surviving on meager rations, hoping for the kindness of strangers while they search for Estrella's father. I would have given 4 stars, but was annoyed with the author's frequent unnecessary use of Spanish words I do not know. ( )

This book is an intense, historical fiction tale of a young Mexican-American girl and her family. During the trying times of the Great Depression, America was in turmoil. Mexican-American citizens seemed to get the shorter end of the stick; they were pushed out of their homeland in mass hoards across the border to Mexico.
This would be a great book to use in a Texas History classroom when introducing the subject of segregation in Texas against Mexican-Americans. Perhaps this book could open the door to some fruitful conversations in the classroom.

I rate this 4 out of 5 stars. ( )

I did not read the companion novel, Shame of Stars, before reading this book. However, it was also not necessary, and I had no trouble diving into this story. In other words, it can be read as a stand alone.

It's 1931, and Estrella is fifteen years old and the daughter of a Mexican/American rancher. While the story begins with her irritation at having to help out around the ranch and take care of her younger brother more than she'd like to, it quickly shifts gears and rotates into a little known historical event: the repatriation, or large deportation of Mexicans, including American citizens with Mexican heritage, during the Great Depression. Determined to stand up to the unfair handlings of her neighbors and friends, Estrella finds herself captured in one of the 'round-ups' and deported to Mexico. Not only is she determined to survive and return to their home, but her entire family is caught up in the horrible battle.

History holds many 'secret' moments, which aren't spoken of or are played down. This is one, which although I'd briefly learned about during school, never heard or knew what was really behind it. Reality is often more powerful than fiction, and that is proven in these pages.

Estrella is a bright girl with tons of gusto. She tends to speak her mind very freely, one of the things which gets her into trouble, but it's also one of her more inspiring traits. The author allows her to gain a natural setting as a teen with usual struggles of independence before allowing the problems to unfold. This gives the reader a chance to get to know Estrella and connect with her, which makes the later events in the book hit that much harder. The characters and emotions are well done, and it's a message which hits home. The fear, struggles, desperation, and hope pull at the heart-strings and leave a vivid lasting impression...exactly that which is needed to make the reader breath it in and think.

Copies of Estrella's journal and news articles sprinkle the pages and give a more true feel to the happenings. It also allows the reader to take a pause and consider the events up to those moments. I found this pacing well done and enjoyed the change from the same printed text.

While the story grabs and gives Estrella life, especially in the first pages, the dialogue and writing didn't hold the realistic atmosphere of the 1930's. I found myself checking several times to see if the characters were really placed in the 1930's or if it was a more modern version. This, however, didn't hurt the main tale and definitely was soon forgotten once the story got going.

At the end of the book, the author leaves her thoughts and provides a glossary of many of the Spanish words and phrases sprinkled in the pages. It's a thought-evoking read and will touch the hearts of older readers as much as young adults.

I received a complimentary copy and found this read so intriguing that I wanted to leave my honest thoughts. ( )