by Lyn Miller-Lachmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2009
Two adolescents, Daniel Aguilar, a high-school student and rock singer, and his girlfriend, Courtney Larkin, a young, passionate writer, recount through separate narration the painful recovery of Chilean Marcelo Aguilar, Daniel’s father, tortured under Pinochet’s dictatorship in the 1980s. Both of them will travel with Marcelo through the horrifying memories of his five years of imprisonment as he struggles, physically and mentally and with very limited success, to adjust to his new home, a small apartment in Madison, Wis., and to his now-unknown bilingual and bicultural family. His wife Vicky, a graduate student, sells empanadas to make extra money, while Tina, his brilliant 12-year-old daughter, has her own troubles. How, through Marcelo, Daniel discovers the Chilean that still lives inside him, and how Courtney, “la gringa,” teaches Marcelo that the land of gringos is not only the home of those who supported the military coup in his country in 1973 but also a land of human-rights lovers make for riveting reading. This poignant, often surprising and essential novel illuminates too-often ignored political aspects of many South Americans’ migration to the United States. (Historical fiction. YA)
Pub Date: May 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-931896-49-8
Page Count: 290
Publisher: Curbstone Press
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2009
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by Joana Estrela ; translated by Lyn Miller-Lachmann ; illustrated by Joana Estrela
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by Susan Neiburg Terkel ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1991
An entry in the ``Venture'' series that, in its comprehensive treatment of options, will be equally helpful to teens and to their parents. Approaching custody primarily from a legal standpoint, free-lancer Terkel outlines types of divorce (default, contested, uncontested, etc.) and gives a particularly informative overview of custody arrangements: sole, joint, joint legal but not physical, dove-nesting (the parents move about), split (taking turns at sole custody). Case studies give the information immediacy; emotional concerns are addressed in descriptions of support programs (e.g., Banana Splits) and of what court is like. Occasionally, disjointedness creates confusion: a section on court investigation doesn't say under what circumstances inquiry occurs, and sample questionnaires from such investigations are plopped at the end without comment, leaving kids to struggle with how to answer provocative questions and ignoring opportunities for self-evaluation and insight. Nonetheless, a balanced, valuable reference source, sympathetically presented. Bibliography; resources; index. (Nonfiction. 14+)
Pub Date: April 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-531-12521-1
Page Count: 128
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1991
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by Jeanne Warren Lindsay & Sally McCullough ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 15, 1991
Once again, a publisher that has found a niche with books for teens who have adult responsibilities meets a need by teaching teenage parents about positive discipline. The core here is an overview of development (including little experiments—e.g., to demonstrate an infant's memory at different stages) plus emphasis on discipline as a way to guide learning and educating through love and trust. Using comments and questions of young parents, the authors get to the essence of child-rearing concerns. Can you spoil an infant? What if your parents pressure you to hit the child, or to be too lenient? Guidelines (e.g., distract rather than punish) are geared specifically to teens: pithy, easy-to-read instructions; behavior that may be new—planning ahead, remembering the nature of infants, offering constant supervision, going slow to avoid future problems. Questions about issues like tantrums, meals, and living in a three-generation home are methodically answered, including introspection about ``too much going wrong'' and options—with one exception: The authors state that ``No one should ever discipline a child in anger,'' but too little is said about how to handle that anger. Bibliography; index. (Nonfiction. 14+)*justify no*
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1991
ISBN: 0-930934-55-5
Page Count: 192
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1991
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