I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez ****

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez is a coming-of-age story. Julia Reyes lives with her undocumented parents and the memory of her perfect but dead sister. She wants nothing to do with her family in the US or Mexico. Her goal is to leave Chicago, go to college, and become a writer. Of course, nothing is easy. Over time she uncovers dark secrets and learns acceptance. An inspiring journey of acceptance and assimilation. Highly recommended.

When Julia was fifteen, her sister Olga was hit by a semitruck while crossing the texting. She “stepped into a busy street at the wrong time. She got hit by a semi. Not just hit, though - smashed.”

Julia’s mother cleans houses, and her father works in a candy factory. They want their daughter to be a receptionist – work in an air-conditioned office sitting down. She rejects their goals. She wants to be a writer. “Didn’t she want more? Didn’t she ever want to go out and grab the world by the balls? Ever since I could pick up a pen, I’ve wanted to be a famous writer.”

Her parents want to give her a quinceañera, but she hates the idea. The same is true for learning to cook, get married, or have children.

Julia is brutally honest, but when she learns her parents’ and her sister’s secrets, she is forced to question her approach.

“A few years ago, I learned you can get away with nearly anything if you mention menstruation to your male teachers.”

The book has a sprinkling of Spanish. Most of it is not translated.

This poem was at the end of the book (only in Spanish, translated by Google Translate).

Cambia el más fino brillante de mano en mano su brillo.
Cambia el nido el pajarillo.
Cambia el sentir un amante.
Cambia el rumbo el caminante aunque esto le cause daño.
Y así como todo cambia que yo cambie no es extraño.

The finest diamond changes its shine from hand to hand.
The little bird changes its nest.
A lover changes his feelings.
The walker changes his course even if it causes him harm.
And just as everything changes, it is not strange that I change.

 

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