Madame Ambassador: The Shoemaker's Daughter [Paperback]

Mari-Luci Jaramillo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 28, 2002

A child of manual laborers works her way up to become a U.S. ambassador to Honduras and a celebrated civil rights advocate. Despite a remarkable career, Jaramillo shows that she remains the shomaker's daughter, faithful to the precepts of her Latino family.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Jaramillo, former ambassador to Honduras, recalls the trajectory of her life from an early childhood of poverty as a shoemaker's child growing up in New Mexico to a life as diplomat and civil rights advocate. Growing up in a close family that emphasized the importance of education to social advancement, Jaramillo overcame her shyness and the low expectations for Hispanic youth in a segregated school system. Later, with a husband, three children, and a factory job, Jaramillo struggled to finish an undergraduate degree. She joined her husband in the teaching profession and got involved in remedial education and teaching English as a second language, which led to an interest in civil rights for Hispanics. Her divorce after 21 years of marriage proved a career catalyst when the Carter administration tapped her as ambassador to the impoverished Central American nation of Honduras. Her childhood poverty helped her relate to the common people; however, balancing the diplomatic goals of the U.S and the local politics of military dictators was a more exacting task. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Paperback: 178 pages
• Publisher: Bilingual Pr (Bilrp) (February 28, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931010048
• ISBN-13: 978-1931010047
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,496,058 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An intensely personal testimony of personal courage, September 6, 2002

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madame Ambassador: The Shoemaker's Daughter (Paperback)

Madame Ambassador: The Shoemaker's Daughter is Mari-Luci Jaramillo's candid memoir as the child of poor immigrants, and who, with a lifetime of experience in solving problems and fighting poverty and prejudice, earned the distinguished post of being the U.S. ambassador to Honduras. Madame Ambassador is a very highly recommended and intensely personal testimony of personal courage, compassion, and inner strength.

5.0 out of 5 stars An Engaging Saga, November 7, 2011

By 

Jim Shannon - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madame Ambassador: The Shoemaker's Daughter (Paperback)

This is a delightful saga of a remarkable transformation from an early life of poverty and humble beginnings. Of Mexican and northern New Mexico ancestry, Mari-Luci Jaramillo dramatically demonstrates the possibilities in life with education and commitment.

While education was emphasized in her childhood, she had few models to emulate. Nevertheless, with determination and family support, she worked her way through college and then earned a Ph.D. from the University of New Mexico. Her career ranged from First Grade Teacher, English as a Second Language Specialist, Activist for Human Rights, and then Ambassador to Honduras. She also became Vice President of the University of New Mexico, Vice President of Educational Testing Service, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Latin America at the Pentagon.

This is not an in-depth political, cultural, or educational analysis of her various career experiences. Rather, Mari-Luci Jaramillo hoped to influence students, especially, whose potential is often not fully realized. With the help of parents, teachers, and other mentors, we can all succeed even with what might seem at first insurmountable odds. The life of Mari-Luci Jaramillo is an enthralling series of accomplishments and achievements.

Jim Shannon, Author-Celebrating Life: An Audacious Marriage

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting but lacking details, May 20, 2010

By 

A. Husted (Overland Park, KS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Madame Ambassador: The Shoemaker's Daughter (Paperback)

I also found this book through the United Methodist Women's Reading Program. It was a very interesting book to read, but the author seems to really "skim" over lots of details in her life. Jaramillo states in the beginning of the book that she was unsure how much of her personal life she should include in her life's story and it's obvious to me that she left out major chunks of both her personal and professional life. As another reviewer stated, she served as ambassador in a very tumultuous time in Central America, yet the account of her ambassadorship revolves mostly around what I thought was inconsequential things: Peace Corps people staying at the house; parties and protocol; being told to redecorate and not wanting to do it; how her "simple" upbringing endeared her to the servants at the house. I would have liked to have read more about the political climate and how she was able to accomplish what she did. Additionally, she really doesn't mention too much about how her professional life affected her kids and marriages. I understand not wanting to print your entire life's story in all its gory details, but a little more details here would have made this book a better read in my opinion.