This book was written in a free verse poetry narrative style. This book was about a latino girl whos mom was suffering from cancer. This book has deep cultural significance along with universal themes about grief and loss. I would recommend this book for ages 11 and up. I enjoyed reading this book as an adult. This book shares real struggles that children can relate to and practice empathy. ( )

Age: intermediate / middle
Genre: poetry

This book was a beautifully written story about a young girl who had to take on responsibilities in her family as her mother got sick. The mother daughter relationship is great in this book. I would use it in my class as a book in a unit where they get to pick out of a few books to read. Being that it is poetry written in verse it can be used for slower readers because the development of the story and the content is still great ( )

It was an honor to read this great book. It would probably be a great book for 3rd-5th graders as it's easy to follow for a novel and very insightful. This book is about a girl named Lupita who was born into a very close, close family who always took care of each other. However, she was the oldest so she had many responsibilities. Especially once her mother passed away from cancer. She needed someplace to let thoughts out and a place to relax when things get crazy and that place is under the Mesquite tree. ( )

Under the mesquite is about a young girl, Lupita, who is part of a close-knit, 8 sibling family. After discovering that her mother has been diagnosed with cancer, she is forced to take on new roles in her household in order to help her family. As a high school student, she must juggle all the difficulties that come with being a teenager while taking care of her family. In order to escape the chaos, she finds comfort writing under the mesquite tree. This book is would work best for upper-level elementary school students and would be very powerful for those struggling with family hardships. This would be a great book to have a reading group read together then discuss.

Middle. This book is an amazing own voices story about the life of the eldest daughter in a large Mexican family that moves to Texas, U.S. Throughout this book, we follow Lupita as she works through high school, her mother's battle with cancer, and her seven younger siblings. She tells and retells this part of her life through poems that mix contain a myriad of Spanish words as well. This would be a great story to incorporate in a poetry lesson although likely for older grades as some of the subject matter is emotionally distressing.