I Am not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sanchez was such a moving story that once I finished it, I almost immediately wanted to open it back up ad read it again. The story follows a girl named Julia after her older sister Olga’s death (she was hit by a car and died almost instantly), the beginning is actually at the funeral and Julia seems to be in a state of indifference. Olga was her mom’s favorite child so she’s highly upset at the funeral unlike Julia ad her dad who haven’t been able to cry yet. A few weeks after Olga’s death, Julia’s mom is depressed, not leaving the bed for a while and suddenly she announces to Julia that she’s going to throw her a quinceanera since she never got to give one to Olga. That night Julia goes into Olga’s room and finds the surprising items (lingerie, a “I love you” note, and a hotel room key) the goes into the hunt to find out the mystery of who her sister could’ve been in love with before she died. 

The story is very much more than meets the eye. There’s a suicide attempt, racism, the burdens of being in an immigrant household with pressures, pregnancy, and how to deal with grief of loved ones. I think that this would be a very important book of people to be assigned to read during school to show how everyone processes grief differently and how secrets can sometimes make or break a family. another 10/10 read for the week.

This book is a new york times bestseller and is the 2018 winner of the Tomas Rivera Award for Young adults.

SANCHEZ, ERIKA L. I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. EMBER, 2017