Under the Mesquite

Bibliography

McCall, G. G. (2011). UNDER THE MESQUITE. Lee & Low Books. ISBN: 978-1-60060-429-4.

Plot Summary

UNDER THE MESQUITE follows a Mexican American teenage girl, Lupita, who immigrated from Mexico to Eagle Pass, Texas. Her mother gets diagnosed with cancer, causing her to learn how to balance her life and her 7 younger siblings. Being the eldest daughter, the pressure of responsibility causes a lot of internal conflict for her, and she struggles with her identity. Through her writing poetry, she processes everything to find the strength she needs.

Critical Analysis

UNDER THE MESQUITE is a great representation of the Mexican American experience. Especially of the eldest daughter’s experience. Being in Eagle Pass, Texas, and Lupita reliving her memories of Peidras Negra, Coahuila, Mexico, gives a great representation of the culture and how it has shaped her life. 

The family role of being the oldest of 8 is a bit part of who Lupita is. It causes her to take on much more responsibility at home once her mother becomes sick. This connects to the culture's focus on family roles as the older siblings must always help take care of the younger ones. As the oldest daughter, she also begins to become like a second mother to them. She loves her family and will do anything for them, but this book shows how that responsibility can affect someone.

Spanish is used occasionally within the book, either as words or phrases. This shows how Lupita's life is bilingual. It's not just random and used wherever. Author McCall uses it to reflect how Lupita thinks and remembers. This back and forth is real to many Mexican Americans who are bilingual.

The poetry makes the story powerful by making it personal and emotional. The novel is written in 1st person, so readers get a direct view of Lupita's grief, fear, hopes, and memories. It helps readers understand she is trying to survive and become resilient like a mesquite tree.

Author Guadalupe Garcia McCall is Mexican American who moved to Texas from Mexico herself. She draws from her personal experiences, even losing her mother to cancer, to create this story. This makes this novel feel much more honest, real, and authentic. Overall, this is a meaningful novel to Hispanic/Latino American representation. 

Review Excerpts

"Author Guadalupe Garcia McCall s beautifully written novel in Lupita s first-person voice captures the flow of life on both sides of the border as Lupita s family, which lives in a Texas border town, regularly goes back and forth to visit relatives in Mexico." CCBC, starred review.

"With poignant imagery and well-placed Spanish, the author effectively captures the complex lives of teenagers in many Latino and/or immigrant families. A promising, deeply felt debut." Kirkus, starred review.

Connections

This book would be a great addition to a poetry unit or lessons about immigration and border identity. Students can analyze the symbolism between Lupita's strength and the mesquite tree. Students can also analyze how poetry can help process and express grief, memory, and culture.