B O O K S

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11/2000. viii, 184 pages.
0896724379
978-0-89672-437-2

Delfino's Journey

By Jo Harper

Jo Harper’s exquisite tale of an Aztec youth who crosses the Rio Grande with Salvador, his simple but intuitive cousin, weaves Aztec legend, culture, and tonali (fate) into a poignant tapestry of illegal immigration, indomitability, and the precarious promise of a new life.

Besides his native Nahuatl, sixteen-year-old Delfino speaks Spanish, which he learned working in Mexico City. He is driven to help his married sister, who at eighteen seems too small and frail to survive her pregnancy. Teresa has lost one child, and Delfino knows Teresa’s chance to have her baby in a hospital depends upon his crossing the river from Mexico into Texas, the land of promise.

Achingly drawn, Harper’s characters fill a harsh world with loving and gentle sensibilities. A master- ful story of suspense and triumph.

Jo Harper’s personal acquaintance with Nahuatl speakers residing in Houston inspired her to write Delfino’s Journey. In particular, Jorge Julian Prudenciano from Ahuelican, Mexico served as a valuable consultant throughout the long research and writing of this book.