Indies Introduce

Middle Grade

  • Look Both Ways in the Barrio Blanco, Judith Robbins Rose
    Candlewick Press, 9780763672355, September 8, 2015 (Middle Grade)

    What if characters like Junie B. Jones and Ramona Quimby had been Mexican-American girls with concerns about immigration, culture, and language? That’s  the flavor of Look Both Ways in the Barrio Blanco. When Jacinta is paired with a mentor who is a white, TV news reporter, her eyes are opened to a much bigger world. The narration is charming, Jacinta is funny, and there’s so much depth to this book. The author is able to address issues of race, culture, and wealth in a way that younger readers will understand.

    Jennifer Wills Geraedts, Beagle Books (Park Rapids, MN)

    Jacinta Juarez is a young Hispanic girl, surrounded by friends and family, dealing with the typical issues of friendships and middle school. But her life is complicated with other worries that she must learn to navigate. Jacinta must be sure not to expose her undocumented parents, she must watch her baby sister without anyone knowing that her father leaves the children so he can work, and she must stay ahead in school. Judith Robbins Rose relates Jacinta’s story with the true voice of a young child dealing with issues beyond her maturity level. Jacinta makes mistakes, tells lies, acts impulsively, and tries to impress her friends. But what she is really trying to do is blend her two cultures so she can get the education her parents wish for her and keep what she holds in her heart -- the comfort of her heritage and her mother’s approval. This is an important story of the life of an immigrant family trying to make it in America.

    Arna Lewis, Buttonwood Books & Toys (Cohasset, MA)

    Don’t let the casual beginning and young narrative voice of a 12-year-old lead you to believe that this book will be tame or mundane, because it gets fierce and real very quickly. Judith Robbins Rose takes you inside the life of Jacinta, the daughter of undocumented parents. This is a story so important in today's world, and it puts a genuine and heart-wrenching face to the families behind deportation. It is rich with teen angst, sorrows, emotions, triumphs, and ambiguity that is not compartmentalized by the borders of neighborhoods, race, or class. This is the story of a life in America that isn’t often portrayed in a children’s chapter book and thank goodness we now have LOOK BOTH WAYS IN THE BARRIO BLANCO to put on our shelves.

    Jesica Sweedler DeHart, BookPeople of Moscow (Moscow, ID)

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