Esperanza Rising

Ryan, Pam Munoz. Esperanza Rising. Scholastic, 2000. Tr. $ 16.25, ISBN-10  0-439-12041-1.

What’s it about?

Esperanza Ortega, a very wealthy girl in Aquascalentes, Mexico, has a sudden change in fortune when her father dies and her family must flee the country to find work in the fields of the San Joaquin Valley in California. 

Find out more: Esperanza Ortega is about to turn thirteen. She lives a life of luxury on a beautiful plantation called El Rancho de las Rosas in Aquascalentes, Mexico. Servants do everything for her, even bathe her. But everything changes for her when her beloved father, Sixto, is murdered. The house and its contents were left to Esperanza’s mother Ramona, but since women couldn’t inherit land, her uncle, Luis, the banker on the loan, owns it. He tries to force marriage upon Ramona so that he can own the house as well. When she doesn’t consent, he sets fire to the house, nearly killing Esperanza’s grandmother. Ramona sees no choice but to flee. With the help of her servants Alfonso, Hortensia and their son Miguel, Esperanza and Ramona go up north to become agricultural workers. Esperanza is shocked by the poverty and grueling work that she must face, but just as she begins to adjust, her mother becomes extremely ill and strikers threaten the jobs of her friends. Despite these trying times, Esperanza stays strong and keeps the seeds of hope alive.

Ryan’s characters are compelling and believable, and her writing style is simple yet poetic, and flavored with Spanish words and phrases. Ryan tells her readers that the real Esperanza is her grandmother in the afterward and gives the reader more historical context, and includes the startling fact that the Mexican Repatriation removed more people than the Native American and Japanese-American removals. This is a story of hope in the face of extreme tragedy and struggles. Esperanza changes quite dramatically during the course of this novel—she is definitely a bit high and mighty, even as the family is fleeing up north. She won’t even let a child on the train ride to the valley touch the beautiful doll her father gave her, because the girl is dirty. It is clear that she feel that she is better than “peasants,” even though she is now an impoverished migrant worker. Her attitude changes as she realizes that how hard life can be, and how important her help is. She is humbled by the knowledge and strength of eight-year-old Isabel, who must teach Esperanza how to do something as basic as washing clothing. The change in Esperanza is clear when she generously gives her doll to the little girl, as consolation for not becoming the Queen of May.

Genre: Historical fiction, Multi-cultural fiction

 Reading level: 5^th grade

Interest level: Grades 4-10

Read-alikes:

Lenski’s Strawberry Girl

Subjects: Agricultural laborers, Strikes, Poverty, Immigration, Mexican workers, Mexican Repatriation, Racism

Awards:

Pura Belpre Award (2002)

2002 Notable Children’s Book (ALSC)

Characters:  

Esperanza Ortega—13-year-old who grews up a priveleged  “reina” (queen) and lost everything when her father was murdered 

Miguel—Alfonso and Hortensia’s 16 year old son and Esperanza’s childhood friend

Isabel—the energetic eight year old child of Juan and Josephina, a very capable worker who shows Esperanza how to take care of the babies

Josephina—Alfonso’s sister in law, lives in the labor camp where Esperanza, Hortenisa, Miguel, Alfonso, and Ramona settle

Juan—Alfonso’s brother, lives in the labor camp where Esperanza, Hortenisa, Miguel, Alfonso, and Ramona settle

Marta—a 16-year-old who lives in the same camp as Esperanza. A leader of local labor strikes who is hateful towards Esperanza

Hortensia—the Ortega’s housekeeper, later helps and flees with the family

Alfonso—the boss of the field workers on the Ortega plantation, later helps and flees with the family

Ramona Ortega—Esperanza’s mother, who is later stricken with Valley Fever

Sixto Ortega—Esperanza’s father, murdered by bandits

Tio Luis—Esperanza’s evil uncle, who tries to force Ramona into marriage

Abuelita—Esperanza’s beloved grandmother, who stays behind in Mexico because of her health