Alexandra Diaz

"Twelve-year-old Jaime makes the treacherous journey from his home in Guatemala to his older brother in New Mexico after his cousin is murdered by a drug cartel"--

The Only Road

Sarah Sammis

The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz was inspired in part from the author's own experience as a Cuban immigrant, and more recently by an article in Smithsonian Magazine about the flood of children entering the United States unaccompanied. 

http://pussreboots.com/blog/2017/comm...

Jeni Enjaian

This book drew me in and captivated me from the very beginning. I have a heart for the immigrant and the immigrant story, especially since so many of my students know this story either first hand or from their parents or other relatives. 
I currently teach the novel "Lupita Mañana" which tells a very similar story just set nearly forty years ago. My students engage with that novel at a level I rarely see with anything else. I know that they would grab onto this novel and not let go, especially since the struggles of Jaime and Ángela resonate so strongly with what they know.
Diaz also weaves in many references to current events and real struggles that she makes this story come alive before the reader's eyes.

I wholeheartedly recommend this novel and will definitely purchase this book (perhaps multiple copies) for my own classroom library.

The Only Road

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