Book Review Summary

Have you ever felt like the odd one out of your siblings? Ever feel like maybe you ended up in the wrong family? Julia Reyes, the main character of this book, felt this way. At the beginning of the book, you find out that Julia’s older sister, Olga, who was seemingly the ‘perfect daughter’, passed away in a tragic accident. Throughout the book, Julia finds out more about Olga’s secret and not-so-perfect life. After Olga’s death, Lorena, Julia’s best friend, befriends a boy and adds tension to Julia’s already crumbling world.

Ama, Julia’s mom, decides that she is going to throw a quinceanera for Julia because Olga did not get to have one due to her sudden death. Julia hates the idea but reluctantly agrees.

Julia meets a white boy named Connor at a bookstore and they begin to date, but Julia worries about their backgrounds conflicting. Problems arise in their relationship when Julia is grounded for sneaking around and she cannot see Connor, which increases her depression.

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Julia wakes up in the hospital because she slit her wrists from the depression. She begins an outpatient program as well as seeing a psychiatrist weekly. Julia is sent to Mexico by her parents to recover with more of her extended family. During her trip, she learns more about how her parents were also rebellious when they were her age.

When she returns home, she and Ama come to a civil agreement that will allow more independence and church attendance, which pleases both.

Julia also reconciles with Connor when she returns from Mexico. Julia reads more into her sister’s life and realizes that Olga had a married lover when she was alive. Not only that, but also that Olga was pregnant with her lover’s baby when she passed away. She finds the doctor that was caring for Olga and her baby, who also happened to be Olga’s secret lover. He gives Julia one of Olga’s ultrasound pictures. Julia asks Angie, Olga’s best friend, about the secret relationship and baby, but Angie tells her to keep it a secret. Julia worries about what kind of toll all these secrets will have on her fragile mental health.

Her mental health continues to improve as time goes on and Julia gets accepted into NYU and DePaul where she would learn to become a writer. While she is hesitant about what the distance will do to her relationship with Connor and friendship with Lorena, she knows that they will keep in contact. While on the plane, Julia reflects on the last two years, worries about the upcoming pressures of her new life, and marvels at all that she has learned about herself and her sister. Personal Experiences Julia Reyes, the main character of the story, is the character that I feel I connect the most with. My sister has always been the child to follow the straight and narrow path and I feel that I am more inclined to follow the road less traveled.

I wonder sometimes if my sister has secrets from our family. I love Julia’s sassy, yet determined personality and how fiercely she loves her family, even if it does not always show through her actions. I think that Julia and I are both quick to jump to conclusions and may speak without first thinking of the consequences our words or actions could have on others around us. I do think that Julia and I differ in our respect towards our parents. While I am more inclined to take a different path, I still understand the necessary respect I must have for my parents. Sometimes, I got the feeling that Julia did not care how her family felt or how she treated her parents. Your opinion of the book I really enjoyed reading this book. I feel that it gave me a better understanding and perspective of how life in a Mexican family can be. It showed me the norms of this lifestyle and what is expected of children in this culture and background.

My favorite part of this book was when Ama and Julia sat down and communicated their wants and needs to each other in a calm fashion so that both sides could listen and understand. I believe that this is often lost in many relationships, and I know from experience that communication is the key to any healthy, balanced relationship whether that is parent to the student, student to student, student to teacher, or parent to teacher.

I think my least favorite part of this book was when Julia’s depression was so bad that she felt she had no other choice but to attempt suicide. Because this is a topic that is near to my heart and my past experiences, it was hard for me to read, notice signs of her depression, and see that her family did not recognize those signs.

If I could change something in the book, I would change her parents so that they would know the signs of Julia’s depression and that, even if her attempt of suicide could not be prevented, they could have already been receiving help for her and the way she was feeling. I also believe that, when her teacher mentioned that she sees a psychiatrist, he should have recommended that to her parents as well. If he had, maybe they could have helped her before the depression sunk in and became worse.

Author of the BookThe author of this book is Erika L. Sanchez. Erika grew up in Illinois as a daughter of Mexican immigrants, which inspired her to strive to defy any and all borders. She graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago then moved to Spain and taught English in a secondary school. She obtained her MFA in Albuquerque, NM from the University of New Mexico. Erika is a poet, novelist, and essayist now living in Chicago. Her largest poetry collection, Lessons of Expulsion, was just published a year ago in July 2017. Her New York Bestseller and National Book Awards finalist young adult novel, I am not your Perfect Mexican Daughter, was published in October of 2017. Sanchez’s work has been published many times as individual works as well as in collections.

ConclusionOverall, I believe that this book has a very good message for both students and teachers, alike. I do, however, think that this is only an adult-friendly book. It has a great storyline, but there are topics and language that are not appropriate for children. I would not have this in any of my future EC-6 classrooms because of the vulgar language and sexual and suicidal topics included. I believe that this book would be good for teachers, who will be working with Mexican students, to read as it gives an inside look into what those students’ lives may look like outside of the classroom.