The autobiography of Esmeralda Santiago when she migrated to New York from Puerto Rico, with her family of five. Also the oldest sibling. the family came to the United States in search of good medical care for the youngest child. Migrating to the United States was hard for this family because the low income in their house hold. This book is filled with surprising things that happen to Esmeralda and her family; as they get accustomed to not only the climate but also environment and ways of living. Although they were traditional Puerto Rican family they eventually become Americanized. A funny but serious book on how life changes a families life all around. Esmeralda arrived in New York when she was 13 years old. Growing up anywhere is hard, growing up in foreign place is harder. Esmeralda faced many struggles growing up, one of many was not knowing English. Since she did not know English, Esmeralda was placed in an ESOL class with unruly children. This prevented her from knowing the language and from being able to find herself as an individual. As the years went by, pressure on Esmeralda from being the oldest grew. What made it hard wasn't that she was just the oldest, she was the oldest female. Many girls who grow up in a traditional Puerto Rican home, know that just being a girl is tough. Esmeralda wasn't allowed to even talk to boys. If she would go on a date an adult always had to be there. Her mother feared what every mother fears: her teenage daughter getting pregnant. I think her mom feared this a lot because she didn't set an example for Esmeralda and her sisters. Although she was a hardworking mother, she didn't teach her daughters the gift of waiting to have sex until marriage. Her mother met a man at a club one day. Little by little he became part of the family, and a baby was on the way. Sadly this man, whose name was Frank, did not get to see the birth of his child. Frank died of cancer. Now there was a family of eight, which included the new baby, Grandma, and her boyfriend. A family of eight now lives on at two bedroom apartment. This was divesting for Esmeralda as she was almost a woman. At age 16 a girl wants her own room and some privacy. It was bad enough she couldn't date. Not having a room with some privacy made it worst. I couldn't imagine what it is to share a room with 2 younger sisters. Luckily, I have always had my own room and I'm the youngest. Yet, I know how it feels to live in a crowded home. Even after when Esmeralda graduated high school, she still wasn't allowed to date on her own. Being 19 Esmeralda now worked at an office and had a friend named Regina. Regina and Esmeralda became good friends when they discovered they had been through a lot of the same things. Unlike Esmeralda, Regina did not have a mother but lived with her traditional Puerto Rican aunt. Both Esmeralda and Regina enjoyed this friendship. Not only because of their traditional back rounds, but also because they were treated differently at their workplace. Many people talked about them because they were young, beautiful and single. Because of that they were also asked out a lot by trashy men who worked with them. but Esmeralda and Regina where wise when it came to dating these men. After many extraordinary years; she attended Harvard University from which she graduated. Soon after she received a Masters degree from Sarah Lawrence College. Esmeralda shows her courage as a Puerto Rican in the Big Apple. A great captivating story on life through the eyes of a brave WOMAN. A great book for people of all ages to enjoy and learn about life's struggles.