Truth and Salsa
Publisher
PeachTree Publishers
Publication Year
2009
ISBN
9781561454983
Pages
176 pages
Genre
realism
Format
novel
Item Type
Fiction
Annotation
A spirited young girl must travel far from home to finally find herself. Mexico is a long way from Kalamazoo-and not just in terms of miles. Almost-thirteen-year-old Hayley Flynn is spending six months with her eccentric grandmother in the rural mountain town of San Miguel. Her father recently deserted the family and Hayley's mom needs time to, as she puts it, "work things through." Down in Mexico, everyone calls Hayley by her new, more glamorous chosen name, Margarita, and life is surprisingly exciting-exotic birds, beautiful butterflies, holidays, colorful fiestas, and new friends like Lili. Hayley and Lili even win parts as extras in a Hollywood movie being filmed in the town. But there are also difficult lessons to be learned. Poverty and unemployment send Lili's father and other men from the village to Michigan to work as migrant workers so they can send money back home to their anxious families. Meanwhile Hayley is on the lookout for la fantasma (the ghost) that is said to haunt her grandma's house. With Lili's help she solves the mystery-and prepares for a new life with her mom back in the States.
Grade Level
3-5
Diversity Topics
Family Relationships; Separation; Poverty; Kinship care; separated parents; living in poverty; grandmother raising granddaughter
Main Character
girl
Race/Ethnicities
Mexican American
Family Formation
mother, father, and grandmother
Awards
Society of School Librarians International Book Awards, 2006, Honor Book, Language Arts K-6 Novels
Keywords
Mexico; migrant workers; ghost; animals
Diversity Impact
direct
STARS Citation
Lowery, Linda, "Truth and Salsa" (2009). Diverse Families. 1106.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/diversefamilies/1106