Preteen girl looking at a cell phone with her parents

Family movie night? There's an app for that

Download our new mobile app on iOS and Android.

Get the app
Parents' Guide to

Esperanza Rising

By Kate Pavao, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 10+

Historical fiction at its best in story of '30s farmworkers.

Book Pam Munoz Ryan Historical Fiction 2000
Esperanza Rising Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

Community Reviews

See all
age 10+

Based on 18 parent reviews

cmendiuhefi
cmendiuhefi Adult
February 17, 2022
age 12+

terrible story

the character never get a real personality and the story always feels like it just started even by the end
watershedschool
watershedschool Parent of 13-year-old
February 23, 2021
age 9+

She went from riches to rags...

Esperanza rising, written by Pam Muñoz Ryan (published in 2000), is about a rich 13yr old girl living in Aguas Calientes, Mexico in 1930. Esperanza loves her life on El Rancho de las Rosas, with her mama and papa and abuelita along with two hundred servants and farm hands. But when a terrible tragedy occurs Esperanza and mama are forced to move to a factory farm in california. Something that I really liked about this book is that it is a page turner. I also feel like that it is very relatable and also understandable. Something that I wish was a little different is that the story didn’t progress as far as I would have liked it, the actual amount of time seemed right but what happened in that time was not as much as I would like it to.
See all 18 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Esperanza, the daughter of a wealthy grape grower in Mexico, leads a charmed life -- until bandits kill her father. One of his brothers pressures her mother to marry him, but after he burns down the ranch, Esperanza, her mother, and a family of former servants escape to California to become farmworkers. There, Esperanza must learn to work hard, which proves difficult for a girl who doesn't even know how to use a broom. After her mother is hospitalized with Valley Fever, she joins the field workers through the various crop seasons. But there is more trouble: Some Mexican farmworkers are striking, and other migrants are arriving from other areas, threatening to drive down wages. Esperanza struggles to keep her family together -- and her hope alive.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (18 ):
Kids say (39 ):

This is a beautiful book that remains educational and inspirational more than a decade after its publication. Readers will sympathize with Esperanza, who must learn to work hard after living a life of luxury -- but more than that, they will be amazed by the strength she shows as she adjusts to the difficult life of a migrant farmworker. Eventualy, she begins to create her own dream for her life in California. Her story, told with Spanish expertly woven in with the English, may inspire readers to learn about their own family's immigration to America, the plight of farmworkers in the 1930s -- as well as the struggles of farm families living in America today.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how Esperanza's story compares with your own family's story of immigrating to America.

  • This book won a Pura Belpré award, which, according to the American Library Association, is given to "a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth." Why do you think an award like this is necessary? Have you read any other of the winners?

  • How does Esperanza's life in California compare with the lives of farmworkers today?

Book Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended book lists

Related Topics

Want suggestions based on your streaming services? Get personalized recommendations

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate