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  • Esperanza Rising by Pam Mu Ryan book cover
  • Esperanza Rising by Pam Mu Ryan book cover
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Esperanza Rising

by Pam Mu Ryan

A new life in California

Award Winner Critically Recognized
$18.74 USD
$31.24 USD $18.74 USD
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Awards & Recognition

  • Award recognition

    Pura Belpré Award winner

    Named a Pura Belpré Award winner; no category is specified in the source.

  • Critical praise

    Publishers Weekly starred review

    Publishers Weekly gave the book a starred review and wrote, “Readers will be swept up.”

AlbakiReads Editorial

A new life in California

Esperanza’s move from her family’s ranch in Mexico to a California farm labor camp reshapes the circumstances she once took for granted. Set during the Great Depression, the story connects her family’s financial struggles and limited acceptance with the working conditions faced by farm laborers. A strike and Mama’s illness add urgent pressures as Esperanza confronts the difference between the life she knew and the one she must navigate. The novel brings together family, displacement, poverty, and labor concerns through the experience of a young person adapting to a changed home.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Young readers interested in historical fiction set during the Great Depression.
  • Readers who want stories about family, displacement, and adapting to hardship.
  • Readers interested in farm labor and working conditions as themes in juvenile fiction.

Themes

Family and displacementPoverty and hardshipFarm labor and working conditionsAdaptation and resilience

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

**CELEBRATING 25 YEARS IN PRINT!**

A modern classic for our time and for all time―this beloved, award-winning bestseller resonates with fresh meaning for each new generation. Perfect for fans of Kate DiCamillo, Christopher Paul Curtis, and Rita Williams-Garcia.

 

Pura Belpre Award Winner

* "Readers will be swept up." -Publishers Weekly, starred review

Esperanza thought she'd always live a privileged life on her family's ranch in Mexico. She'd always have fancy dresses, a beautiful home filled with servants, and Mama, Papa, and Abuelita to care for her. But a sudden tragedy forces Esperanza and Mama to flee to California and settle in a Mexican farm labor camp. Esperanza isn't ready for the hard work, financial struggles brought on by the Great Depression, or lack of acceptance she now faces. When Mama gets sick and a strike for better working conditions threatens to uproot their new life, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her difficult circumstances--because Mama's life, and her own, depend on it.

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Customer reviews

M
AlbakiReads
Malaika Taylor

I highly recommend to for anyone looking for inner clarity

T
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Thomas DiMassa

Great service and fast service

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Ella

Great shopping experience! The book arrived quickly, was well packaged, and matched the description perfectly. I would definitely shop with you again

O
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Olivia

Smooth.