The Bluest Sky
by Christina Diaz Gonzalez (Author)
A boy and his family must decide whether to remain in Cuba under a repressive government or risk everything for the chance of a new beginning in this gripping story from the award-winning author of The Red Umbrella.
There are two versions of Héctor: the public and the private. It's the only way to survive in communist Cuba--especially when your father was exiled to the U.S. and labeled an enemy of the people. Héctor must always be seen as a fierce supporter of the regime, even if that means loudly rejecting the father he still loves.
But in the summer of 1980, those two versions are hard to keep separate. No longer able to suppress a public uprising, the Cuban government says it will open the port of Mariel to all who wish to leave the country--if they can find a boat. But choosing to leave comes with a price. Those who want to flee are denounced as traitors by family and friends. There are violent acts of repudiation, and no one knows if they will truly be allowed to leave the country or not.
So when Héctor's mother announces that she wants the family to risk everything to go to the United States, he is torn. He misses his father, but Cuba is the only home he has ever known. All his dreams and plans require him to stay. Can he leave everything behind for an unknown future?
In a summer of heat and upheaval, danger and deadly consequences, Héctor's two worlds are on a collision course. Will the impact destroy him and everything he loves?
Christina Diaz Gonzalez's great-grandmother, great-uncle, and extended family came to the U.S. through the Mariel boatlift. She vividly remembers meeting them all for the first time in the summer of 1980 and is proud to share this part of her family's history.
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Publishers Weekly
Centering one family's harrowing experience, Gonzales (Invisible) sheds light on the Fidel Castro-ruled Cuba of 1980. Eleven-year-old Héctor knows that the only way to survive in Communist Cuba is to pretend to be a staunch Castro supporter--and to publicly renounce his father, who was imprisoned six years prior for speaking up about the country's lack of freedoms. While trying to blend in, Héctor focuses on qualifying for this year's International Math Olympiad, but the stain of his father's actions threatens to hinder him. When the government opens the port of Mariel, making it possible for residents to leave Cuba, Héctor's mother decides that the family will reunite with their father in Miami, where he was transferred via a political exchange, as soon as their exit visas come through. Héctor's not interested in leaving, though, and his abuela, a powerful, Castro-supporting National Assembly delegate, vehemently opposes the act. Soon, word of the family's plans to leave becomes public, and a crowd ambushes their house, leading to a tragedy that precedes further difficulties. Brimming with tumultuous events of Castro's Cuba, Gonzales's affecting socio-political novel balances historical traumas with empathy and hope, tackling timely themes of personal beliefs and individual versus government freedoms. Ages 10-up. Agent: Jennifer Rofé, Andrea Brown Literary. (Sept.)
Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.Review quotes
A heart-wrenching story and a moving affirmation that families belong together, always. —Emma Otheguy, acclaimed author of Sofía Acosta Makes a Scene The characters in this book will stay with me for a very long time. Their desire for freedom will stay with me forever. —Jennifer A. Nielsen, New York Times bestselling author of A Night Divided
JUV016150 - Juvenile Fiction | Historical | United States - 20th Century
JUV011030 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | United States - Hispanic & Latino
