Esperanza Rising ****

By Pam Munoz Ryan
Fiction

DEATH **
VIOLENCE **
PERIL *
ROMANTIC AFFAIRS **

This is a very good, clean book. I really enjoyed it and have read it over and over again over the years. Esperanza has such spirit and insight on what it was like to be a Hispanic immigrant in America in the time of the Great Depression.
Esperanza has every thing she could ever want. Her family is very wealthy, her father is a kind, hard working man, and her mother is beautiful and kind as well. She has twelve porcelain dolls, one for each of her birthdays. And she is about to receive another for her 13th birthday. Tragedy strikes her family and ranch. Desperate, they decide to take the long journey to America where they can find work. Going from riches to rags is difficult for Esperanza, who has always had a hand-maiden to do everything for her. When Mama gets ill, can Esperanza take charge and earn enough money to take care of her mother?