The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz was a book I found while roaming the library. I impulsively threw it in my basket and am so happy I did that. I love this book and its sequel! It is absolutely amazing and one of my favorite books. The main topic of this book is immigration and the hardships it takes to immigrate safely. I actually found this topic really interesting and Alexandra Diaz immersed the reader very well.

The book centers around tween Jaime (Hay-meh) Rivera and his older cousin Ángela (An-juh-luh). After Jaime´s cousin (and Ángela´s brother), Miguel, gets viciously murdered by the local gang, they are forced to leave their home, family and life in Guatemala and travel to the United States of America, illegally. The Riveras sacrifice many things, but scrape up enough money to send their children in as much comfort as possible. Jaime and Angela get smuggled by a friend across the Guatemala-México border and have to embark on their journey through the giant Hispanic country.

Along the way, they meet some friends who are attempting the same journey, but they are from different countries. I really liked how Alexandra Diaz included immigrants from various Central American countries, including El Salvador and Honduras. Back to the point, Jaime and Angela meet their friends and continue getting farther into México. As more obstacles occur, Jaime and Angela fight and learn who they really want to be and who they are traveling for. They also continue to mourn Miguel as the book goes on, understandably.

This book is so good that I don’t want to spoil it at all, hence the short and vague summary. I especially like how Alexandra Diaz includes Spanish words, even if it’s just one here or there. I recommend this book for anyone whos parents, or themselves, have immigrated here and its sequel too. I hope you enjoy The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz!

The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library.