In this Pura Belpré Honor-winning memoir, sequel to best-selling The
Circuit, Francisco Jimenez tells his timely story about immigrant
prejudice, keeping hope alive when there is none and his family's
journey to achieving their American dream.
At the age of fourteen, Francisco Jiménez, together with his older
brother Roberto and his mother, are caught by la migra. Forced to leave
their home in California, the entire family travels all night for twenty
hours by bus, arriving at the U.S. and Mexican border in Nogales,
Arizona.
In the months and years that follow during the late 1950s-early 1960s,
Francisco, his mother and father, and his seven brothers and sister not
only struggle to keep their family together, but also face crushing
poverty, long hours of labor, and blatant prejudice. How they sustain
their hope, their good-heartedness, and tenacity is revealed in this
moving, Pura Belpré Honor-winning sequel to The Circuit. Without
bitterness or sentimentality, Francisco Jiménez finishes telling the
story of his youth.