Reviewed by Alex Morales
Review Source: Reading Is Resistance
Book Author: Areli Morales
Areli is a Dreamer by Areli Morales tells the compelling story of Areli’s experience immigrating to the United States from Mexico as a young child. I am a DACA recipient, and this book uncovered emotions within me that I had not confronted since I immigrated to the United States when I was two years old. As I followed Areli’s story, I found deep resonances with my experience in a country that has high expectations for immigrants, regardless of their age. Through muted color schemes, Colombian illustrator Luisa Uribe encapsulates Areli’s sometimes playful and other times poignant upbringing. From the depiction of her grandmother’s house in Mexico to the bustling streets of New York, the illustrations throughout the book positively impact the telling of Areli’s story. Uribe does a wonderful job engaging readers with the book and demonstrating the differences in culture and setting between the two worlds Areli exists in. For example, readers see her hugging the chickens goodbye in Mexico and in another illustration observing the colorful fireworks during the fourth of July in New York City. Continue reading on Reading is Resistance.
Areli Is a Dreamer by Areli Morales
Published by Random House Children's Books on June 8, 2021
Genres: Immigration and Emigration, Latinx
Pages: 40
Reading Level: Grade K, Grades 1-2
ISBN: 9781984894014
Review Source: Reading Is Resistance
Publisher's Synopsis: In the first picture book written by a DACA Dreamer, Areli Morales tells her own powerful and vibrant immigration story.
When Areli was just a baby, her mama and papa moved from Mexico to New York with her brother, Alex, to make a better life for the family — and when she was in kindergarten, they sent for her, too.
Everything in New York was different. Gone were the Saturdays at Abuela’s house, filled with cousins and sunshine. Instead, things were busy and fast and noisy. Areli’s limited English came out wrong, and schoolmates accused her of being illegal. But with time, America became her home. And she saw it as a land of opportunity, where millions of immigrants who came before her paved their own paths. She knew she would, too.
This is a moving story — one that resonates with millions of immigrants who make up the fabric of our country — about one girl living in two worlds, a girl whose DACA application was eventually approved and who is now living her American dream.
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is an immigration policy that has provided relief to thousands of undocumented children, referred to as “Dreamers,” who came to the United States as children and call this country home.
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