Category: Young Adult/Teen Publisher: CreateSpace/John E DeJesus
ISBN-10: 1451506007
Pages: 156
Copyright: January 2010
ISBN-13: 9781451506006
The book is a series of short stories about a Puerto Rican boy growing up in Brooklyn, NY in the 1970's.
Excerpt
"They call me Taco. As far as nicknames go, I guess it's
as good as any ... but it's a Mexican delicacy, and I happen to be Puerto Rican. Using that same logic, I would have
preferred to be called by a Puerto Rican food, like Relleno or
maybe Empanada; but Taco it is." ... The name came from a kid in the first grade. ...
... "What's his last name?", Percy asked.
"Well Juan", Miss McAffee asked as she looked at me over her glasses.
"My name is Juan. Juan Ortega.", I answered.
"You mean like the Taco?", Percy shouted.
... "From that day on, just about everyone called me Taco.
After a while I grew to like it. It made me unique. At
least I wasn't one of two Juans."
And so begins the adventures of Juan Mateo Ortega, a young Puerto Rican boy growing up in Brooklyn, NY in the 1970's. His stories are about colorful people and colorful places and they are the colors that paint his world.
Jennifer finally ends up in Apalachia after barely escaping an attack. She soon learns about her destiny and how her actions will 'put a friend in grave danger'. With everyone refusing to tell her more Jennifer must find answers for herself.
It's 1969 and some high school students in a small town decide to oppose a war that makes no sense and promises to set their lives on a different path against their wishes.