After dark in a Mexican border town, a father holds open a hole in a wire fence as his wife and two small boys crawl through. So begins this collection of twelve autobiographical stories by professor Francisco Jimenez, who at the age of four illegally crossed the border with his family in 1947. "The Circuit" is the story of a young, wise and sensitive boy, Panchito and his trumpet. These independent but intertwined stories follow the family through their circuit, from picking cotton and strawberries to topping carrots--and back again--over a number of years.The little family of four grows into ten and impermanence and poverty define their lives. But with faith, hope, and back-breaking work, the family endures. Beautifully and authentically rendered by actor and playwright Adrian Vargas, these stories tell of the almost unendurable journey most migrant campesinos undertake to find the American Dream. The recording concludes with an afterword recorded by the author. Recommended for Grades 5 and up.
As he prepares to recite the Declaration of Independence before his eighth grade social studies class in California, the thing Francisco has feared for ten years finally happens. La migra, the immigration police, come to his classroom and pick him up for deportation to Mexico. Soon back in the United States with a "green card," Francisco struggles through adolescence, working two or three jobs a day and striving to excel at school. But he also finds time to be a typical teenager in the 1950s, an era of cool cars, dances, and Elvis.
After dark in a Mexican border town, a father holds open a hole in a wire fence as his wife and two small boys crawl through. So begins this collection of twelve autobiographical stories by Professor Francisco Jimenez, who at the age of four illegally crossed the border with his family in 1947. The Circuit is the story of a young, wise and sensitive boy, Panchito and his trumpet. These independent but intertwined stories follow the family through their circuit, from picking cotton and strawberries to topping carrots-and back again-over a number of years. The little family of four grows into ten and impermanence and poverty define their lives. But with faith, hope, and back-breaking work, the family endures. Beautifully and authentically rendered by actor and playwright Adrian Vargas, these stories tell of the almost unendurable journey most migrant campesinos undertake to find the American Dream. The recording concludes with an afterword recorded by the author. Recommended for Grades 5 and up.
"Lifting the story up from the mundane, Jiménez deftly portrays the strong bonds of love that hold this family together. An afterword recorded by the author gives even more background on his family. Vargas's narration offers an authentic and strong Mexican voice. Highly recommended for all collections and bookstores."--Publishers Weekly
