Esperanza
A Latina Story
by Sandra C. Lopez
Genre: Teen Fiction
Fourteen-year old Esperanza Ignacio could only think of a few words to sum up her life: crap, crap, crap!
She was born into a poor Latino family living in a small crummy apartment in the barrio side of town,
where the graffiti chiseled more the souls and character of the residents than it impacted the exterior
looks of the buildings. Her father was a drunken gambler, and wife-beater who, one cold night, got
arrested after a violent intrusion. Her entire circle of relatives consisted of nothing but formers- former
drug-addicts, former gangsters and gang-bangers, former alcoholics, former everything. Yep, her life was
nothing but a huge load of crap. And she hadn't even started high school yet.
After surviving a scorching summer heat, Esperanza enters the unfamiliar world of high-school with a
tight knot in her stomach. On the very first day, she is sucked into a blunder of catastrophic events
beginning with accidentally running into the world's BIGGEST bully. Now, she has made herself the
prime target for a main course. And, to top it all off, she has to see this girl everyday in P.E! P.E.-the one
class Esperanza truly despises the most. Could life be any worse for her? Well, her family could take in a
relative hopped up on drugs, a probable shooting can take place right in front of her, and Esperanza
could also sit and listen to the crazed ranting of her loud psychotic mother. Oh, wait, all that does
happen. To make things even easier, her best friend, Carla, won't stop trying to marry her off to her twin
brother, Carlos. And she has these two puny siblings constantly vying for her attention. God, it's a
wonder she doesn't strap herself in a straight jacket and pretend to be Elvis. Nonetheless, Esperanza
attempts to get through it all. She is a smart and ambitious young kid struggling to survive her life while
fighting to make her mark on the world. Her story is filled with pain, strength, and too much loud
bickering. It carries a voice enriched with barrio slang and sarcastic humor. Esperanza illustrates what
persistent Latino youth can achieve when they get back up after a fall and keep on walking straight into
college.
"Esperanza is an admirable and too real story of many Latino youths lacking role models, who find
themselves lost and isolated in the paved jungles of the inner cities and overwhelmed by the dissonance
of barrio life. Sandra C. Lopez has created a resilient and likeable character, Esperanza, who seems
closer to a naked truth-seeker than to a barrio kid-desperately trying to get out of a crappy world, but not
knowing exactly where she was going to. Highly Recommended."
Andrea Alessandra, University of California, Berkeley
"Sandra López is a fresh and resonant voice from the Hispanic rainbow."
Ray Michael Baca Author-"Brotherhood of the Light"
Book Trailer
Sandra C. López is a writer, artist, blogger, and book reviewer. She is one of today's funny and influential
authors in YA and chick lit. Her first novel, Esperanza, was published in March 2008 WHILE she was still
in college. Her most recent and bestselling book is Single Chicas, a collection of humorous short stories
about zany chicas. She is currently working on the next installment of the Single Chicas series called
Holiday Chicas. Release date coming soon! When not writing her stories, Sandra supports the art and
literary communities with freelance work, book promotion, and running a Read and Review Program. For
more info, see below:
GUEST POST
Coming back a celebrity
By Sandra Lopez
For
those of you who have heard be speak at a book signing or an author
panel, then you know the story of how I got into the writing gig. But
for those of you who are just joining us, I’ll tell it again.
I
started writing my first teen fiction novel, Esperanza,
when I entered my first year of junior college, fresh out of high
school. The book was about a 14-year old Mexican-American girl who
wanted to get out of the barrio and make something of her life. I
wrote this story without the help of a computer while taking a full
load of classes 5 days a week. When I finally finished it, I stacked
it on the shelf so it could collect dust forever. I had absolutely NO
intention of having it published as being an author was something I
thought I could never do when I was growing up. But, one day, I
decided to pitch it to some publishing houses out there. Out of 40
letters I sent out, 35 came back rejected and the rest didn’t come
back at all. I was about to give up on the whole thing when I got a
call from the editor of Floricanto Press asking to see the rest of my
manuscript. Four months later, I received a contract. Then two years
after that, I was holding my first published book. And all this
happened WHILE I was still in college!
Since
then, I have written a sequel to my first book called Beyond
the Gardens,
and graduated with a Bachelors degree from Cal State Fullerton. To
this day, I spend my free time visiting colleges and local libraries
talking about my books and the writing process.
A
common misconception most people have about authors is that they are
rich. That’s so
not true. I don’t have a butler or a chauffeur or diamond earrings
or a mansion made out of gold. Would I like to have all that? Hell
yeah! Yes, I would like to be on the best-seller’s list. Yes, I
would like my books to be transformed into movies. And, yes, I would
like to make all that money from just sitting on my butt and writing!
But, alas, like most other writers, I do have a day job. I just do
events whenever I can.
Now,
I don’t think much has changed since I got into the writing
business. I mean, it’s not like I get stopped on the streets
whenever a fan recognizes me. I’m still living a normal, everyday
life. The only difference is that I get asked for autographs more
often. Let me tell you, it’s way
different than when you had to sign yearbooks in school. And I feel
honored every time.
But
does this make me a “celebrity?” Well, a few people do,
especially the kids. I actually came back a “celebrity” when I
went to go visit my old school district.
Sometime ago, I got an email from a lady that works for the district. She was ecstatic to learn from the internet that I was from the local area and now an AUTHOR. She called me a great role model for young kids and absolutely insisted that I meet up with her to discuss a possibility of talking to the classrooms of the district. So that's what I did.
I met up with Ann (that's her name, BTW), who hit the floor at the first sight of me (maybe I should've brushed my hair or something, or it might have something to do with the fact that I'm some sort of celebrity now.) Anyway, after she breathed a few times, I proceeded to talk about how I got started in writing and what, if anything, led me to take on this goal when I was in school. For a second, I thought Ann was going to have a stroke. Apparently, she couldn't contain herself because before I could even say anything else, she rushed to the phone to ask if the superintendent could spare a few moments to meet me at that point. Then ten minutes later, we met up with the superintendent, who I relayed my life story and writing career to. Both of them were so amazed by my accomplishment that they purchased 8 copies of my books right on the spot. Even the secretary was in awe. And when I told him that I was the designer of my website, they were that much more impressed.
By the end of the meeting, they referred me as "a product of their school system." It actually made me wonder: Did I have anything to do this, or was it all them?
In any sense, it was good to go back and recall all those memories in school. I even met up with my old Vice Principal in Jr. High. Of course, he didn't remember me, but I remembered him (vaguely). See, I'm not that old.
It's going to be great to speak to the students next year. I will tell all of them that it IS possible to make something of yourself and come back a celebrity.
Sometime ago, I got an email from a lady that works for the district. She was ecstatic to learn from the internet that I was from the local area and now an AUTHOR. She called me a great role model for young kids and absolutely insisted that I meet up with her to discuss a possibility of talking to the classrooms of the district. So that's what I did.
I met up with Ann (that's her name, BTW), who hit the floor at the first sight of me (maybe I should've brushed my hair or something, or it might have something to do with the fact that I'm some sort of celebrity now.) Anyway, after she breathed a few times, I proceeded to talk about how I got started in writing and what, if anything, led me to take on this goal when I was in school. For a second, I thought Ann was going to have a stroke. Apparently, she couldn't contain herself because before I could even say anything else, she rushed to the phone to ask if the superintendent could spare a few moments to meet me at that point. Then ten minutes later, we met up with the superintendent, who I relayed my life story and writing career to. Both of them were so amazed by my accomplishment that they purchased 8 copies of my books right on the spot. Even the secretary was in awe. And when I told him that I was the designer of my website, they were that much more impressed.
By the end of the meeting, they referred me as "a product of their school system." It actually made me wonder: Did I have anything to do this, or was it all them?
In any sense, it was good to go back and recall all those memories in school. I even met up with my old Vice Principal in Jr. High. Of course, he didn't remember me, but I remembered him (vaguely). See, I'm not that old.
It's going to be great to speak to the students next year. I will tell all of them that it IS possible to make something of yourself and come back a celebrity.
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