Customer Reviews

Tortilla Sun

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was a sweet book about a twelve-year-old girl Izzy who spends the summer with her grandmother in New Mexico while her mother finishes her studies. While she is there, she becomes immersed in the Mexican culture that her mother had surpressed out of grief after the death of her husband. Izzy searches for answers about her father's death and she may find them if she can find the voice in the wind.

I'm always looking for books about the Latino culture and was very happy to have found this one. There is lots of language, food, tradition, folklore, and even superstition that really make the reader feel that he or she has traveled to New Mexico. Middle-grade readers will relate to the character of Izzy and her search for the truth. And they'll love the element of magic in the story. This will be a great addition to my elementary school library.

Izzy and her mother have moved more times than she wants to remember. She's just getting settled again when her mom announces she's received a research grant to study in Costa Rica and Izzy will be spending the summer with her nana in New Mexico.

Izzy doesn't know her grandmother very well, and she's not at all happy about being dumped for a couple of months while her mom is gone. But once she arrives at the small adobe village near Albuquerque, magic starts to happen. As Izzy begins to discover more about her family and herself she begins to feel like she may have finally found a place to call home.

Tortilla Sun by Jennifer Cervantes weaves a little magic into the story and a lot of magic into readers as the tale unwinds. Izzy's nana has a way with tortillas and a way with people as well. The story of Izzy's parents and her own past slowly comes out in small bites to help her digest it a little bit at a time, and in the process she comes to know and love the people of the village.

Tortilla Sun had me longing to see the Sandia Mountains, feel the warmth of the sun and hear the call of the wind. Bright New Mexico comes as vividly alive as the colors worn by many of its people. This book is recommended for ages 9 to 12, but I think girls up to 14 or 15 may enjoy it too. And the moms are likely to be delighted by Izzy's journey of self-discovery. Issues to discuss include family heritage, ethnic traditions, dealing with grief and finding acceptance.

There's a recipe in the back for tortillas that I can't wait to try, and making them could be a fun mother-daughter book club activity. I highly recommend Tortilla Sun.

The book starts a little slow but keep reading- it gets very interesting! I read a lot and this is the first book I've loved since the Harry Potter series!

Izzy is the heroine of this story - she spends the summer in New Mexico while her Mom works on her schoolwork. During her time in New Mexico, she learns about the Mexican culture that her Mom never showed her. Izzy looks for information about her Dad, who died earlier, and hopes to find them in the wind voice.

I liked the book, but I didn't like it as much as many other books I have read, even though it was set in New Mexico, which is where my Dad is from. I would read it again, and I think it is an important book for everybody to read.

Lexi, age 8

I loved this book! There is SO much to love: The characters are winning and real and fresh (Izzy is the kind of main character that you instantly connect with and root for all the way through the book); the setting is beautifully, expertly described and rich with gorgeous sensory details (the kind that make me look at and appreciate my own surroundings in a new way); and the engaging story itself keeps you turning pages and keeps you guessing (and I was both delightfully surprised and heartily satisfied at the outcome). Tortilla Sun is the rare book that I enjoy so much that I can't put it down because I'm so happily immersed in it, but then I'm sad when I reach the end because I don't want to leave the characters and the story world.

This is now at the top of my gift-list: This wonderful book is what I will be giving kids (and adults who appreciate a great story) for birthdays and Christmases and other special occasions for a long time to come! I'm so glad the author decided to share her talent and share this story (thank you!). I eagerly await her next book.

Beautiful debut with a pitch-perfect middle-grade voice. Great setting and characters with just a hint of magic that makes it even more special. Jen has created a New Mexico village that makes me want to move there and get to know the people who inhabit it even better.

When Izzy is shipped off to her grandmother's village, she starts to put the pieces of her early life together - how did her father die? Is the baseball she found full of magic? Why does she hear words on the wind? Pick this up and settle in for a quiet and satisfying trip with arresting language and images that are sure to stay with you long after you close the cover.

This review was written soley by my 9-year old daughter.

Tortilla sun is about three things a ball, a girl, and a mystery. All this is put together in a wonderful adventures story. When things change for Isadora or Izzy as she likes to be called into a world of mysterious questions she is determined to find out the truth and every drop of it. Izzy never knew her father and her mother won't tell her anything. When Izzy finds out her mother has to go to Costa Rica and is sending her to New Mexico to live with her grandma Izzy gets mad. After finding a ball that belongs to hopefully her father she hears her mother talking to her nana about him. What secrets lie in New Mexico? Izzy hopes to find out. Even with the help of friends can she? The book connected my love to ask questions and find out answers. If you like mysterious stories set in New Mexican background check out Tortilla Sun By Jennifer Cervantes!
Review by Kathryn, Age 9
Posted by her mom

I'm a huge fan of magical realism, so was very excited to see this book: a magical realism title appropriate for kids. The characters are very believable. At points, the book runs a bit slow, which is why I only gave it 4 stars. But the second half of the book speeds along. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and recommend it for adults and kids.

I was barely a chapter into Tortilla Sun when I knew that this was a book that I not only wanted to share with my students but that I would use as a read aloud with my fifth graders. You may be wondering, what is so special about Tortilla Sun? Cervantes has created a story filled with well-developed characters, a vibrant setting, and a message of loss, love, family, and hope (pull out your tissues when reading this - I sobbed for nearly the last 1/4 of the book). Twelve year old Izzy never met her father who died before she was born. Her mother and she have never settled into one house or an apartment for any extended time. After moving into yet another new place, Izzy uncovers a box of things that belonged to her father including a baseball with the worn words "Because____ ____ magic". Shortly after this discovery, Izzy's mother is called away on a research trip and sends Izzy off to spend the summer in New Mexico with her grandmother. At first Izzy is unhappy with this decision but shortly after arriving she discovers that the summer may be a time where she can learn about who her father was and what are the missing words rubbed off from the baseball. From her Nana, she discovers the magic of homemade tortillas, and learns that the past needs time to be revealed. From 13 year old Matteo and 6 year old Maggie, she learns about friendship, adventure, and caring about others. From the adults that surround her in this small village, she learns to embrace the magic around her and discovers who she is. Cervantes also weaves together Spanish words and phrases along with wonderful references to food and activities that further embrace the Latino culture.

This coming of age story is beautifully and masterfully told. Cervantes has hit her own home-run with this debut offering and I am eager to read any future books from her.

The only thing twelve-year old Izzy knows about her father is that he died before she was born. Moving from place to place with her mother in San Diego, Izzy yearns to finally settle down. While unpacking yet another box, Izzy finds an old baseball with some hand-written words on it, and suspects it belonged to her father. Her mother refuses to talk about it, and sends Izzy to spend the summer in a small pueblo in New Mexico with her grandmother. Izzy secretly brings the baseball with her, determined to find the meaning of the words and finally learn the story she has always longed to hear.

Arriving in New Mexico, Izzy is struck by the beauty and the color in her grandmother's world. Fiestas, homemade tortillas, family and friends, envelop Izzy in a new world of magic. In the pueblo she meets people who knew her father, and makes friends with a boy named Mateo, and a cat who thinks she's a dog. It is there that Izzy hears the wind whisper secrets, leading her on an adventure of discovery. Will she finally learn the meaning of the words on her father's baseball and hear the tale that could help fill in the missing pieces?

Tortilla Sun is the story of one summer that changes a girl's life forever. It is a heart-warming tale of family, friendship, and magic. Jennifer Cervantes has beautifully described a world of sweet-smelling Mexican dishes, colorful surroundings, and a vibrant Hispanic culture.
-- Reviewed by Kristina Miranda