My Brigadista Year

Reviewed by: Elizabeth Andersen - Westbrook High School, Westbrook, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: July 18, 2017

Review

Katherine Paterson never disappoints. She creates stories with characters that readers root for, even while acknowledging the injustices of their worlds. The story begins in Havana in 1961. Thirteen-year-old Lora joins Castro’s movement to end illiteracy in Cuba by deploying volunteers to teach all Cubans to read. This historical fiction novel covers a little-known part of Cuba’s historic fight against illiteracy that involved over 250,000 volunteers. It is also a coming-of-age novel as Lora learns more about the people outside of Havana, makes new friends, and faces dangerous situations. There is a spirit of adventure to the novel, as well as a sense of human kindness.The novel includes an author’s note, a map, and a timeline of Cuban history. This book might be of interest to readers of The Red Umbrella by Christian Gonzalez which is more critical of the Castro regime.

Overall Book Score: excellent