MY FAMILY DIVIDED

Guerrero tells her own story of growing up with undocumented immigrant parents and the devastating effect on her life when they were deported.

Using a conversational tone that makes her story eminently accessible, Guerrero (writing with Moroz) tells of being born with a privilege her parents did not have: U.S. citizenship. As is the case with many undocumented immigrants, from the time they arrived from Colombia they took on all kinds of low-paying jobs, dreaming of a better life for themselves and, particularly, their children. Although they kept a low profile, Guerrero’s parents were detained and deported in 2001, when she was 14. Left behind to fend for herself, Guerrero moved in with family friends until she went to college. The trauma of her experience finally caught up with her there, when she suffered from debilitating depression and started cutting. Eventually, with a series of lucky breaks and by sheer gumption and determination, she landed a part on the hit show Orange Is the New Black. Nowadays Guerrero also works to bring to light the plight of undocumented families and to fight for their rights. A list of resources is included. Although the book is pitched to a middle-grade audience, Guerrero’s struggles as a teen and young adult are likely to go over their heads—and, importantly, will resonate keenly with YA readers.

This is a timely reminder that none of us lives in a vacuum and that deportation affects more than just the deportee.