I really struggled between liking and not liking this book, mainly because the themes in the story are excellent discussion points. What disappointed me was my expectation that Ms. Diffenbaugh's writing and character development would be as great as it was in "The Language of Flowers." This is not up to her previous quality.

The areas that detracted from the story was the character of the mother and her young daughter; their behavior was almost frenetic without any let-up. The mother, although she did develop in the end, was unlikeable. She wasn't unlikeable because of her many flaws, but I couldn't imagine her having a friend like the one she had (which was not developed at all, just a name). I would have like to see an argument between the both of them, something to clue me in on why they'd be best friends, other than the friend is a convenient babysitter.

The characterizations of the grandparents were interesting and I found them to be realistic. The uniqueness of the grandfather's hobby and his relationship to his grandson provided some depth and much interest to the story.

I found myself skimming over the parts of the mother so I could read about her son and his girlfriend. Their characters had a poignancy about them that kept you reading and rooting for their relationship very unlike the relationship between the mother and her love interests.

Too much plot points started to confuse me. This story would be an excellent YA novel if the plot only zeroed in on Alex (the son), his girlfriend Ysenia, and their story.

Um, it was okay. I finished it, which is saying something, but I can't recommend it to someone else to read.

I really enjoyed this one! It could be considered too simplistic with all the heavy topics it held, but sometimes you just need a book that is light on the soul, that still gives you interesting things to think about.

This was the second book I have read by this author, for I read her first novel, The Language of Flowers, previously and which I enjoyed immensely. This second book, however, I felt something was missing towards the end and if you read the acknowledgements, the author herself admits to this novel being a struggle, which may explain this a bit.

This is about mother who struggles well mothering her children until she is forced to. She is a young woman who was raised in California by illegal immigrant Mexican parents. Her parents move back to Mexico and thus, she is left with her 15 year old and her 7 year old to figure out how to be a parent.

I found it a bit aggravating that she was so hesitant with her relationship with Rick in this novel. I felt like screaming at her, I will take Rick if you won't have him! He was such a good guy, but not in that annoying I don't want him type of way; a genuine good guy.

I did, however, like that DACA was mentioned. That acronym gets thrown around a lot in the United States and it was interesting to hear it described in a story.

Nonetheless, the ending felt rushed. It felt like it all tied together too nicely and real life just isn't like that all the time. It was too much of a cookie cutter ending for me and left me with a lot of unanswered questions, hence the reduction in star here. Maybe the ending was the author's ultimate struggle?

Overall a recommended read, but I still prefer her first novel over this one.

There's a lot going on for Lettie Espinosa, a single mom, who for the past 15 yrs has let her parents raise her kids. Lettie was born in the USA but not so her parents who decide to return to Mexico. Lettie is now faced w/ a 15 yr old son, whose father she knows but has never told he is a father and a 6 yr old daughter whose father she is not sure of. I learned a lot about science, birds a illegal immigration

Not a book I would've chosen (the cover art, just... agh!), and it was better than I expected it to be.

I was a big fan of Vanessa Diffenbaugh's first book, [b:The Language of Flowers|10032672|The Language of Flowers|Vanessa Diffenbaugh|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333577674s/10032672.jpg|14928278] which I read earlier this year. Her second book did not disappoint.

She tackles some uncomfortable subjects in a really deft way. She weaves together the struggles of the various characters to make a really compelling story that I honestly didn't want to end.

This absorbing story puts you in the center of Letty's struggles to become the mother she hopes to be. Letty was a young mom, totally dependent on her parents to raise her kids. When her parents decide to return to Mexico, Letty is on her own. She has to face the problems of a fifteen year old son falling in love with an illegal immigrant, as well as raising her daughter, who has failed to thrive in the atmosphere of poverty. My only problem with the book is that the ease in which Letty turns her life around with the help of Rick, is a bit unbelievable. Well written.

The least believable book ever.

review to come later...but really quick. Great book!!!
.................
I'm upping the rating to 4.5 stars.

I love Diffenbaugh's writing! It's so beautiful and descriptive and it evokes so many different emotions. In addition to her way with words, Diffenbaugh has a way of creating real people, not just characters. At times I was frustrated with them, struggling and laughing with them and ultimately I ended up loving all of them (yep every single one. How often does that happen!)

This book is great. Not only is it a wonderful and touching story, filled with relatable and loveable characters, but it made me grateful as well as informed.
It made me realize how lucky I am that I was born into this life. And it showed a real (yes it's technically fictional) family with struggles that are incredibly relevant today and it gave me some insight and a different perspective (something great books tend to do).
I don't want to get into politics, but I think it's good to keep the whole picture in mind in regards to tough situations and this book served as a reminder to try to do that.

Anyways, the short of it is that this is a wonderful book and I highly recommend it and the author!