Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 09/15/2022 *Starred Review* There is a special power in historical fiction’s ability to blend real issues and events with engaging characters, turning the past into a living, breathing thing. Salazar (The Land of the Cranes, 2020) accomplishes this beautifully in her new novel in verse, set in 1965 California during the Farmworkers’ Movement. Lula Viramontes works on a farm where she and her family harvest grapes in dangerous conditions. At home, she helps care for her siblings and her mother, who is extremely sick, while also trying to dodge her father’s angry outbursts. Lula finds some respite in dreaming about becoming a ringmaster in a Mexican traveling circus, despite knowing this aspiration will likely have to be set aside. One day, by chance, she meets a group of activists, which includes Dolores Huerta, that is tirelessly fighting for the rights of farm laborers (including migrant workers like Lula’s family) to make sure the work is distributed more fairly and safely. As the story progresses, readers witness Lula as she finds her voice and learns to speak up, realizing that she’s in charge of her future and her dreams. Led by a memorable protagonist, this novel mixes themes of growth and change with historical details and powerful observations on the abuses that sparked the Farmworkers’ Movement and the strength of those demanding justice. - Copyright 2022 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 11/01/2022 Gr 3–7—Lula Viramontes, a seventh grader in Imperial Valley, CA, has big worries in 1965. Her big family lives in a labor camp, as they follow the farming crops of grapes and whatever else needs harvesting. Lula and her older sister Cocha want to go to school, but they are often needed at home to help with the younger siblings, as Mamá has developed a mysterious illness. Papa and their older brother Rafa toil in the fields, doing the backbreaking "men's work" while often being mistreated and not paid. The plight of Lula's family and that of migrant farm workers is deftly told. Lula has big dreams, but her wispy voice is all but gone, and she lives in fear of her father's violent temper. When Lula's friend Lenor tells her of strikes that are forming for workers to get better rights and wages, Lula is afraid to speak up. Then they learn Mamá's illness may be a result of the pesticides used on farms, and the family is more willing to hear the compelling voices of Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez, the leaders for the striking farming associations. When the family faces eviction for striking, Lula must find her voice, and stand up for what is right. VERDICT Poignantly told, the story of Lula and her family's plight will tug young readers' heartstrings; this is an important, and sometimes unspoken, part of the American past and present that needs to be brought to light.—Michele Shaw - Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.