Under The Mesquite
Bibliography
McCall, G.G. 2011.UNDER THE MESQUITE. New York, NY: Lee and Low Books Inc. ISBN 9781600604294
Plot Summary
Lupita started her young life in Coahulia, Mexico, but was uprooted and taken to Eagle Pass, Texas. She was the eldest of eight children and tried to navigate school and help her mother with her younger siblings. However, everything changed, when she learned that her mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She had to take on the role of being a mother to her siblings, while going through her own pain. After her mother died, she was lost and didn’t know how to navigate her life. It was a trip back to Mexico that made her realize that her mother wanted to see her experience life. It was just that that Lupita did when she returned back to Eagle Pass. She continued to make her own way by going away to college, but still remembering her loving mother.
Critical Analysis (Including Cultural Markers)
UNDER THE MESQUITE is a free-verse novel under the genre of domestic fiction. It contains literary elements that include settings, character development, conflict and resolution. It also contains a theme of family bonds and determination. The author is able to chronologically make the characters older as the verses depict the character’s milestones. The author also utilizes the mesquite tree as a symbol of determination and survival. The author is able to explain the meaning of the tree in the first page of the novel. This is important because the reader can infer that just as the tree is strong and sturdy and can survive in harsh conditions, so will the main character of the novel.
The first Hispanic culture marker that was found in the novel was the interlanguage that the author utilizes. For example, throughout the novel the author uses Spanish words like “loteria”, “comadres”, “los Estados Unidos”, “mi amor”, “telenovela” and many other Spanish words.
The next Hispanic culture marker found in the novel are the names of the characters. The names are very common within Hispanic culture. For example, Lupita, Analiza, Victoria, Paco, Tita, Juanita, Rosita and Benito. It is important to note that Lupita is a name that is derived from Guadalupe and has a strong connection in Hispanic culture to the “Virgen de Guadalupe”.
In the verse titled “elotes” the author describes the Mexican snack, which makes this another culture marker connected to Mexico. “Los elotes are delicious, sweaing butter and painted with chili-powered lime juice” and “so good and so spicy, muy rico y picoso”.
In the verse titled, “las telenovelas”, there is a description of the skin tone of the mother, making this another culture marker connected to Mexico. “But her skin is different. Hers is a darker, richer brown.” Another reference to the skin tone is made in the verse titled “Swimming the Rio Grande”. “Papi is stranded in the shade of the mesquite trees because he is güero, not dark like we are”.
Another cultural marker that is linked to Hispanic culture is connected to folklore. The author uses references to the “Llorona”, which is a story told to children to get them to go to sleep. In the verse titled “Mother, May I”, Lupita states, “I pray every day for a miracle, or for the legendary la Llorona, that horrifying ghost of a mother, to carry off my troublemaking siblings”. Often Hispanic children grow-up knowing this story, because it is told over and over by their parents. Along with the Spanish version of the bogeyman, which is the “Cucuy”.
The next Hispanic culture marker that is found in the novel is the connection that the main character has with Mexico and the U.S.A. The reference in the novel to crossing the Rio Grande, which is a river connecting parts of Mexico with the U.S.A. “When I peeked out the windows in our new house across the Rio Grande”. It is important to mention that the author does a great job in the cover of the novel by depicting the roots of the mesquite tree as a map and having the main character in the middle of the map depicting the deep roots that the main character has with both countries.
Overall this novel in free-verse has authentic Hispanic culture markers, providing the readers with Hispanic names, Spanish words, and a cultural reference glossary at the end of the novel.
Reviews Excerpts
Pura Belpre Award
Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award
International Latino Book Award Honor
Américas Award Honor
Kirkrus Review: A promising, deeply felt debut. (Spanish glossary) (Verse fiction. 12-18)
School Library Journal: Reviewed by Jill Heritage Maza , Oct 01, 2011
This stunning debut novel in verse chronicles the teenage years of Lupita, a character drawn largely from the author's own childhood. Poised to enter her freshman year in high school, Lupita comfortably straddles the country of her birth, Mexico, and that of her family's adoptive country, the United States. She and her seven siblings live with their Mami, a gifted gardener and tender of her brood, and Papi, a hardworking construction worker. When her mother is diagnosed with cancer, the disease begins to sap the family's lives both emotionally and financially. The simplicity of the story line belies the deep richness of McCall's writing. Lupita, a budding actress and poet, describes the new English words she learned as a child to be "like lemon drops, tart and sweet at the same time" and ears of corn as "sweating butter and painted with chili-powdered lime juice." Each phrase captures the essence of a moment or the depth of her pain. The power of Lupita's story lies also in the authenticity of her struggles both large and small, from dealing with her mother's illness to arguments with friends about acculturation. This book will appeal to many teens for different reasons, whether they have dealt with the loss of a loved one, aspire to write and act, are growing up Mexican American, or seeking their own identity amid a large family. Bravo to McCall for a beautiful first effort.—Jill Heritage Maza, Montclair Kimberley Academy, Montclair, NJ
Lupita leads her seven younger siblings through the uncertainty of their mother's cancer. Lupita endeavors to keep her Mexican American family together while attempting to reach her own goals for college and a career. First-person free verse with Spanish carefully sprinkled throughout project this young woman's thoughts, fears, and triumphs with grace and resolve. Glos.
Connections
Summer of the Mariposas by Guadalupe Garcia McCall
Teachers and librarians can connect this novel and create a character development graphic organizer with the main character.
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