Return to Sender

Alvarez, Julia. Return to Sender. Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. ISBN-10: 0-375-95838-0


Plot Summary
Tyler's father can't work on the farm very much since a tractor rolled on him and he crushed his arm and leg. In order to keep the farm running, Tyler's parents hire three Mexican immigrants to work. So Mari, along with her father, her two uncles and her two younger sisters come to live in a trailer on the family farm. Mari is worried that her mother will come looking for the family in North Carolina and won't know that they've moved to Vermont. Mari's mother had returned to Mexico when Mari's grandmother was dying and was supposed to cross back over the border through an Indian reservation, but she never arrived and no one knows what happened to her. Now, there is talk on Immigration raids and Mari is worried that her family will be torn apart.

Critical evaluation
Alvarez's timely novel speaks directly to current immigration debate. The title of the novel takes its name from a real program conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in which thousands of illegal immigrants were deported. Despite the political undertones, the book's strength is the characters. Alvarez draws a parallel between the Mexicans who were no longer able to make a living farming and the Vermont farmers who would lose their farms if not for the Mexican laborers. The friendship between Mari and Tyler, which develops over their shared interest in astronomy, humanizes the debate.


Readers Annotations
With Tyler's brother going off to college in the fall, Tyler's father will have a lot of work to do. When Tyler's father is in a tractor accident, the family doesn't know how they will manage the farm. Tyler's mother calls them Mexican Angels. With the help of Mari's dad and uncles, Tyler's family can afford to keep the farm. But at what cost?

Information About the Author
Julia Alvarez is a Chicana author who now lives with her husband in Vermont. Return to Sender was inspired by real life encounters with the Mexican immigrants that work on her neighbors' farms.

Genre
Realistic fiction

Curriculum Ties
Political science

Booktalking Ideas


Reading Level/Interest Age
Grade 7-9

Controversial Subject Matter and Defense of Ideas
Alvarez's story is sympathetic to illegal immigrants, especially those families where the children are American citizens. Nonetheless the story is realistic, and undoubtedly will ring true for some young readers.


Why Book Included
Recommended by a classmate