by Reyna Grande, 325 pages, Grades 8 and up.

Reyna Grande recounts the story of her life in a small village, Guerrero, Mexico, and her family’s hopes and dreams to travel to “el otro lado” (the other side, or the United States). The parents decide to leave the children behind with their grandmother while they try to find footing in the U.S., but Reyna and her siblings feel abandoned by their parents and cannot possibly imagine what life might be like in “el otro lado.” Their mother returns from time to time to visit the children, but they do not see their father for years, until one day when he finally manages to bring them to the U.S. But, even when they have achieved their dream of living in the United States, things are more complicated than anyone could have imagined.

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If you enjoy memoirs you might also like: Every Falling Star, by Sungju Lee, This Star Won’t Go Out, by Esther Earl, Belonging, by Nora Krug, or Just Mercy, by Bryan Stevenson.

Tags: memoir, autobiography, Mexico, teens, adventure, family problems, identity, immigration