The Queen of Water [Hardcover]

Laura Resau (Author), Maria Virginia Farinango (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 8, 2011

An ALA Amelia Bloomer Selection
An ALA-YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Book

Born in an Andean village in Ecuador, Virginia lives with her large family in a small, earthen-walled dwelling. In her village of indígenas, it is not uncommon to work in the fields all day, even as a child, or to be called a longa tonta—stupid Indian—by members of the ruling class of mestizos, or Spanish descendants. When seven-year-old Virginia is taken from her village to be a servant to a mestizo couple, she has no idea what the future holds.
In this poignant novel based on a true story, acclaimed author Laura Resau has collaborated with María Virginia Farinango to recount one girl's unforgettable journey to self-discovery. Virginia's story will speak to anyone who has ever struggled to find his or her place in the world. It will make you laugh and cry, and ultimately, it will fill you with hope.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* In a desperately poor Andean village in Ecuador, 7-year-old Virginia is sold off by her ind�gena (Indian) parents as a servant to an academic, mestizo family. In her new home, the wife beats her, the husband gropes her, and she is insulted as a longa tonta (stupid Indian). Still, she teaches herself to read and write and begins to perform science experiments in secret. Then, when she is 12, she finally gets a chance to return to her parents: But does she want to? And do they want her? Virginia does travel back to her ind�gena family, but there is not the expected sweet reunion. Ashamed of her illiterate parents and bitter that they gave her away, Virginia is uncomfortable in the family�s mud-walled shack, where she cannot speak the language and hates the hard work. Could she go back to being enslaved in the mestizo family�s clean �prison�? Rooted in Farinango�s true story, the honest, first-person, present-tense narrative is occasionally detailed and repetitive, but it dramatizes the classic search for home with rare complexity and no sentimentality or easy resolutions. Virginia�s conflicts with her birth parents and her employers are heartbreaking, even as she finds a way to attend school and shape a more hopeful future. A moving, lyrical novel that will particularly resonate with teens caught between cultures. Grades 8-12. --Hazel Rochman

Review

Starred Review, Booklist, February 15, 2011:
"A moving, lyrical novel that will particularly resonate with teens caught between cultures."

Starred Review, Publishers Weekly, May 9, 2011:
"The authors' candid narrative richly depicts Virginia's passage from a childhood filled with demoralization to a young woman who sees her life through new eyes."

Starred Review, School Library Journal, June 2011:
"This is a poignant coming-of-age novel that will expose readers to the exploitation of girls around the world whose families grow up in poverty."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (March 8, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385738978
• ISBN-13: 978-0385738972
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 1.2 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #780,022 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

With a background in cultural anthropology and ESL-teaching, Laura Resau has lived and traveled in Latin America and Europe - experiences that inspired her books for young people. Her latest novel, The Jade Notebook, was praised by School Library Journal for "the lush descriptions, intermittent action sequences, and sprinkling of fantasy [that] all come together to form an engaging reading experience."

Her previous novels - The Queen of Water, Star in the Forest, The Ruby Notebook, The Indigo Notebook, Red Glass, and What the Moon Saw - have garnered many starred reviews and awards, including the IRA YA Fiction Award, the Américas Award, and spots on Oprah's Kids' Book List. Acclaimed for its sensitive treatment of immigration issues, Resau's writing has been called "vibrant, large-hearted" (Publishers' Weekly) and "powerful, magical" (Booklist).

Resau lives with her husband and young son in Colorado. She donates a portion of her royalties to indigenous rights organizations in Latin America.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Incredible book by a talented author June 30, 2011

By Steph's Dad

Format:Hardcover

First let me declare my bias. My daughter edited this book. She brought this talented author to my attention and I have to say that even as an older adult male, she has become my favorite. She reminds me of Harper Lee and this book reminds me of "To Kill a Mockingbird" in that it takes on the prejudices of today's society in a wonderful,revealing and compassionate manner, but from a child's eyes.

I don't want to relate all the books events and spoil it for you, so I'll only say that it tells the true story of a 7-year old indigenous girl pressed into slavery in Ecuador. Despite beatings and unending abuse, the child survives to become a remarkable young adult. Like many good books, it is a story about coming of age, a story of coming to grips with who you are and what you are made of.

Maria Virginia's story is made compelling in its telling. It is enhanced and made real by Resau's nuanced writing. Virginia reminds me of William Ernest Henley's poem, "Invictus" for she certainly has an "unconquerable soul". But, Virginia is also sensitive, intelligent and compassionate. Her many doubts and fears and prejudices are wonderfully resolved in an uplifting and beautifully told ending.

I find one of the most desirable terms in the English language to be "non judgmental". Laura Resau is certainly non judgmental and all her characters are accepting and compassionate of all ethnic and social differences. This is one of the most important things to teach your children. This should be on every teenager's reading list.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An important book about a world wide issue September 17, 2012

By Laura Lanik

Format:Paperback

Meet Virginia. She is an Indigenous child in Ecuador who at the age of seven is given to a Mestizo family to care for their child. Virginia's childhood is over quickly as she is forced to cook, clean and babysit while locked in the apartment all day. She expects to be paid for her services and to be able to visit her family on weekends but what happens is quite different. She is beaten on a regular basis, treated with racial insults, and never paid or allowed to see her family. As Virginia grows older she realizes she has forgotten her language and the faces of her family. She is caught in the web of domestic slavery and held in fear.

Eventually the people begin to trust Virginia and that is when she teaches herself to read and write. When she is locked in the house all day she studies and makes plans to leave or call her sister. Virginia is strong and sprited and in some ways is comfortable where she is, with a TV, food, a bed of her own and other luxuries. But she has dreams, big dreams of becoming a singer or actress, dreams of freedom and love, dreams of becoming an educated women. It's these dreams that force Virginia to hatch a plan of escape.

The Queen of Water is a great story of a resilient teen who is able to achieve her dreams. It is based on a true story so it makes the reader aware of the plight of young children who are forced into slavery. People my not realize that there are more people in slavery today than when it was legal 200 years ago. Children are a big part of the slave trade today. Many parents are tricked and think they are sending their children to a better way of life when in reality they are suffering everyday, caught in the web of slavery and just want to come home. Except they don't know where home is or how to speak the language and they are culturally changed and feel lost. Some parents actually sell their children to slave traders. It is a sad situation in our world and thankfully authors like Resau are bringing world wide issues like domestic slavery to the forefront.

The Queen of Water is about courage and the drive to make your life better no matter the circumstances. Resau collaborated with Laura Virginia Farinango after learning her story and has written an important book that will appeal to readers of all ages and cultures.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Engaging journey to another world March 8, 2011

By Snowy Gray

Format:Hardcover

Loved this book. I read it a few weeks ago, but it really haunts me. The life that is so different from here in the US and yet the strength of Virginia is so incredible. Resau brings a deftness and lyricism to the writing and Virginia brings the gut-wrenching truth of her history in a unique story along the lines of Horatio Alger's rags to riches tales, but so much richer and thought-provoking. Great book to discuss, as our own society has parallels, and yet we profess to be so different in our values.