The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child

Francisco Jiménez

Oct 1999 · The Circuit Book 1 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

"'La frontera'...I heard it for the first time back in the late 1940s when Papa and Mama told me and Roberto, my older brother, that someday we would take a long trip north, cross la frontera, enter California, and leave our poverty behind." So begins this honest and powerful account of a family's journey to the fields of California -- to a life of constant moving, from strawberry fields to cotton fields, from tent cities to one-room shacks, from picking grapes to topping carrots and thinning lettuce. Seen through the eyes of a boy who longs for an education and the right to call one palce home, this is a story of survival, faith, and hope. It is a journey that will open readers' hearts and minds.

Ratings and reviews

This is a book about the travels and inherent difficulties for Miguel, the child of migrant farm workers in California. He has difficulty in school because he doesn't speak English well, and moves around so much. He is not old enough to work in the fields yet either, and he is constantly looking for ways to contribute.

Best book ever. Thanks to my teacher in middle school Mr.Hayes i was able to meet Mr. Jimenez. And after we read his book just shaking his hand and thinking that he had been through a lot on his childhood and knowing he achived everything wanted... Im not sure if he contineus teaching at Santa Clara University.

This book a of migrant family provides a deep look into the struggles and realities of living as illegal citizens in the United States trying to create an opportunity for a better life.

About the author

Francisco Jiménez emigrated from Tlaquepaque, Mexico, to California, where he worked for many years in the fields with his family. He received both his master’s degree and his Ph.D. from Columbia University and is now the chairman of the Modern Languages and Literature Department at Santa Clara University, the setting of much of his newest novel, Reaching Out. He is the Pura Belpre Honor winning author of The Circuit, Breaking Through, and La Mariposa. He is also the recipient of the John Steinbeck Award. He lives with his family in Santa Clara, California.