Sixteen-year-old Martha and her mother move constantly, never staying anywhere for long. So she knows better than to ask if they’ve been evicted again when her mom says they’re going on a “vacation” to meet the grandmother Martha didn’t know existed.
Laredo, Texas, is like no other city she has seen. Driving past businesses with Spanish names and colorfully painted houses with burnt lawns, Martha can’t imagine her mother living somewhere so … Mexican. At her grandmother’s pink house, she’s shocked and hurt when her mom abandons her, even though a part of her had been expecting it.
Suddenly Martha must deal with a way of life that is completely foreign. Her grandmother doesn’t speak English, so communication is difficult, and she’s not the typical, sweet grandma who dotes on her grandchildren. Even weirder, it turns out that her grandmother is revered as a healer, or curandera. And there are tons of cousins, aunts and uncles all ready to embrace her!
At her new school, Martha can’t be anonymous like before because everyone knows she’s Doña González’s granddaughter. Meanwhile, a girl who has it out for her makes things unpleasant. As Martha struggles to adjust to her new life, she can’t help but wonder why her mother left Laredo. No one is willing to discuss it, so she’ll have to unravel the secret herself.
**
Review
A magical story about a girl who awakens to her potential when her vagabond mother abandons her at her grandmother's home in Laredo, Texas. Kept in the dark her entire life, 16-year-old Martha discovers that everything she thinks she knows about herself is a lie. Evicted time and again while on the road with her mother, her life was nomadic and impoverished. Thrown into her grandmother's Spanish-speaking world, she discovers that her last name is Gonzalez rather than George and that she has a large family. As Martha endeavors to learn the language of her long-lost family, she discovers that her grandmother is a curandera with healing powers. Engaging in practices that are a fusion of Indigenous beliefs and Catholicism, Martha finds her confidence. But as she becomes determined to uncover her mother's secrets, she is thwarted by the way her family is reluctant to talk about the past. When she develops a mortal enemy at school, she must decide whether to back away or fully immerse herself in her grandmother's curandera teachings. Debut novelist Temblador has created an unforgettable character in Martha, a girl whose gifts are greater than she could have imagined, in part because they belong to a world she never could have imagined. The novel introduces young readers to a Mexican community that maintains its roots in its Indigenous bloodlines. A suspenseful and fascinating glimpse into a Mexican-American world. --Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)
Alex Temblador's magical Secrets of the Casa Rosada follows Martha George, a sixteen-year-old girl whose rootless and impoverished life with her mother shifts. The book is evocative with a strong sense of place. From the first page, Laredo, Texas, is described in beautiful sensory detail. The culture of its primarily Mexican community is brought to life as Martha explores her new environment. [It] is a fascinating story with a strong protagonist and a glimpse at some unique aspects of traditional Mexican culture. --Foreword Reviews
From the Inside Flap
Sixteen-year-old Martha and her mother move constantly, never staying anywhere for long. So she knows better than to ask if they've been evicted again when her mom says they're going on a "vacation" to meet the grandmother Martha didn't know existed.
Laredo, Texas, is like no other city she has seen. Driving past businesses with Spanish names and colorfully painted houses with burnt lawns, Martha can't imagine her mother living somewhere so ... Mexican. At her grandmother's pink house, she's shocked and hurt when her mom abandons her, even though a part of her had been expecting it.
Suddenly Martha must deal with a way of life that is completely foreign. Her grandmother doesn't speak English, so communication is difficult, and she's not the typical, sweet grandma who dotes on her grandchildren. Even weirder, it turns out that her grandmother is revered as a healer, or curandera. And there are tons of cousins, aunts and uncles all ready to embrace her!
At her new school, Martha can't be anonymous like before because everyone knows she's Dona Gonzalez's granddaughter. Meanwhile, a girl who has it out for her makes things unpleasant. As Martha struggles to adjust to her new life, she can't help but wonder why her mother left Laredo. No one is willing to discuss it, so she'll have to unravel the secrets herself.