Surviving Santiago - Hardcover

Lyn Miller-Lachmann is the author of Gringolndia (a 2010 ALA Best Book for Young Adults) and Rogue. She has an M.F.A. in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts and an M.S. in Library and Information Science from the University of Wisconsin. She is the former editor of MultiCultural Review, and has taught English, social studies, and Jewish studies. She is the assistant host of Vientos del Pueblo, a bilingual radio show featuring Latin American and Spanish music, poetry, and history. She grew up in Houston and currently lives in Albany, NY, with her family.

Gr 9 Up—This companion to Miller-Lachmann's Gringolandia (Curbstone, 2009) focuses on Daniel's 16-year-old younger sister, Tina. In 1989, Tina is sent to Chile for the summer to be with her father and aunt. Her father is a known anti-government activist, and though he is able to work as a reporter for a radio station, his home life is difficult due to the large amount of alcohol that he consumes and his physical handicaps, which were caused by the beatings he endured when he was locked up as a political prisoner. His sister feels an obligation to help care for him, even though they have a rocky relationship. Tina finds herself in an uncomfortable situation. She is lonely and spends much of her time at her father's house trying to keep busy while her father and aunt are at work. When she meets a delivery boy named Frankie, she believes that he will save her from the agonizing summer ahead. The first two-thirds of the book set the stage for the political climate of Chile in the late 1980s and the interpersonal relationships of the main characters. However, the last third of the novel does not ring true, as Tina stands by a character who betrays her, even when it could mean life or death for her and the ones she loves, and the end seems too pat and implausible. VERDICT Purchase for collections in need of literature with Hispanic protagonists and historical time periods not often covered in schools.—Elizabeth Kahn, Patrick F. Taylor Science & Technology Academy, Jefferson, LA