Jimena Perez Puede Volar (Spanish Edition)

by Jorge Argueta (Author)

Jimena Perez Puede Volar (Spanish Edition)
Reading Level: 6th − 7th Grade
En este conmovedor poema narrativo para niños de 10 a 15 años, Jimena Pérez, de diez años, relata su vida en El Salvador, el viaje al norte con su madre para evitar ser reclutada por las pandillas y su eventual detención y separación por parte del INS.
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School Library Journal

Starred Review

Gr 3-6--Jimena Pérez loves her mami and papi, her dog Sultán, her abuela, and the fruits her mami sells at the San Jacinto market. She loves the sunrises and the sunsets of El Salvador and the books she reads at the market. When the threats of the neighborhood gangs grow closer, Jimena's parents decide to take their daughter to the United States, far away from the impending violence. Jimena and her mami must make the long journey to Texas, boarding the train known as La Bestia (The Beast). When Jimena and her mother are caught by border agents and separated, Jimena is left alone with other children, unsure of where her mother is or when they will be reunited. Through her sadness, Jimena finds comfort in the books someone brings to the children, books full of beautiful pictures and words that give Jimena wings that help her fly. She becomes "a little bird." Written with heartbreaking honesty, the lyrical poems provide insight into the intimate world of a young girl who loves her life and her family, but who, like so many others, must leave everything behind in order to reach a better--and safer--life. This bilingual book is divided into two sections, one with the poems in Spanish and the other with the poems in English. VERDICT A necessary title for public and school libraries. Argueta presents a candid look at the reality many children and families face and the difficult choices they have to make when trying to change their lives.--Selenia Paz, Harris County Public Library, Houston

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"Argueta tells the story of 10-year-old Jimena Perez, who unexpectedly journeys from her home in El Salvador to the U.S. Told in a sequence of short poems first in Spanish and consequently in English, this poignant story introduces Jimena's home through her senses. A poignant, sincere, empathetic glimpse at family border separation."-starred review — n/a "Kirkus Reviews"
Jorge Argueta
JORGUE ARGUETA, a Pipil Nahua Indian, is a prize-winning poet and author of more than twenty children's picture books, including Una película en mi almohada / A Movie in My Pillow (Children's Book Press, 2001) and Somos como las nubes / We Are Like the Clouds (Groundwood Books, 2016), which won the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award and was named to USBBY's Outstanding International Book List, the ALA Notable Children's Books and the Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices. His books in the Madre Tierra / Mother Earth series are Viento, Vientito / Wind, Little Wind (Piñata Books, 2022); Fuego, Fueguito / Fire, Little Fire (Piñata Books, 2019) and Agua, Agüita / Water, Little Water (Piñata Books, 2017), winner of the inaugural Campoy-Ada Award in Children's Poetry given by the Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española. The California Association for Bilingual Education honored him with its Courage to Act Award. Jorge is the founder of The International Children's Poetry Festival Manyula and The Library of Dreams, a non-profit organization that promotes literacy in his native El Salvador. Jorge divides his time between San Francisco, California, and El Salvador. FELIPE UGALDE ALCANTARA, a Mexico City native, illustrated Viento, Vientito / Wind, Little Wind (Piñata Books, 2022); Fuego, Fueguito / Fire, Little Fire (Piñata Books, 2019); Agua, Agüita / Water, Little Water (Piñata Books, 2017); Mother Fox and Mr. Coyote / Mamá Zorra y Don Coyote (Piñata Books, 2004); and Little Crow to the Rescue / El Cuervito al rescate (Piñata Books, 2005).
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781558858893
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Pinata Books
Publication date
January 20, 2020
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV057000 - Juvenile Fiction | Stories in Verse (see also Poetry)
JUV039250 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Emigration & Immigration
JUV030040 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | Caribbean & Latin America
Library of Congress categories
Immigrants
Spanish language materials
Bilingual
Emigration and immigration
El Salvador

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