Horn Book
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Looking back at his teenage years in a New Mexican barrio called Hollywood, Sammy recalls his ill-fated romance with the tragic Juliana, the death of a friend in Vietnam, and the impact of social changes on his school life and friendships during the late 1960s. Written in a poetic first-person voice that incorporates some Spanish into the narrative, Sammy's story of love, loss, and strong family ties is hard to forget. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Gr 9 Up-Benjamin Alire S enz's realistic story (Cinco Puntos Press, 2004) of one young man's coming of age comes off the page with Robert Ramirez's authentic and quiet reading. The novel is set at the end of the 1960's, not in California's semi-mythical movieland, but in a Las Cruces, New Mexico, barrio. Juliana, Sammy Santos's first love, dies at the beginning of the story. Although he doesn't forget her, Sammy's attentionAand the listener'sAmust turn to the present as he moves on through his life. Studious, responsible, but able and willing to stand up to authority when the cause is right, Sammy's high school days include helping his widowed father care for his younger sister, student protests, the reality of the Vietnam War, friends who fall victim to drugs, and other friends who are banished from the community for being gay. Sammy dreams of leaving Hollywood for college, but tempers his dream with the knowledge that he may never get away. Teen listeners, whether or not they share Sammy's Latino background, will appreciate his authenticity as well as the details relevant to the era.- Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Gr 9 Up-Sammy Santos-responsible, bright, and self-contained-grows up in the Hollywood barrio of Las Cruces, NM, during the last half of the 1960s. S enz provides the Mexican-American teen with a voice that is genuine and compelling, realistic in its limitations and nuances as he comes to grips with the death of Juliana, his first love, and the increasingly complex demands and needs of his remaining friends, as well as of his family and neighbors. Subplots involve the role of the Church in the barrio, the movement from authoritarian school administrations to the loosening of rules during the Vietnam War period, the realistic portrayal of what happened to too many gay teens during this period (and continues to happen today), the effects of the draft on poor young men of color, the roles adopted by individual teens as they mature within a community's social order, and family ties that require people to choose sometimes for themselves and sometimes for others in the family. S enz works through all this material neatly and so effectively that Sammy deserves to become a character of lasting interest to both casual readers and literature classes. Expletives appear throughout as do large helpings of Spanish, without italics and not always with English echoed afterward, in perfect keeping both with Sammy's world and his self-perception. His hopes and plans for a better life, beyond the hold of Hollywood are poignant and palpable. This is a powerful and authentic look at a community's aspirations and the tragic losses that result from shattered dreams.-Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.
Gr. 9-12. Someone's gonna hurt you. And you're gonna wish you never had a heart. The warning quickly becomes reality as Sammy struggles with his girlfriend Juliana's violent death. Sammy and Juliana's Hollywood is a New Mexico barrio, where Sammy loses more than his virginity and his girlfriend during his difficult 1969 senior year. A good student and an avid reader (his classmates nickname him The Librarian ), he works hard for his dream of college. One friend is drafted for Vietnam, another dies of a drug overdose. Two gay friends leave town in exile, and Sammy's father is injured in an automobile accident, altering Sammy's plans. But dad suggests that they shouldn't feel so bad about loss: I mean--it's the only thing we're good at. The barrio setting is as palpable as the wings that beat against Sammy's insides when danger lurks. The tough but caring family, neighbors, and friends speak in authentic dialogue liberally laced with Spanish that adds texture to the story, and an empathetic teacher and a stand against the school dress code provide a small victory to help Sammy weather the racism and poverty that fuel his emotions and his losses. --Cindy Dobrez Copyright 2004 Booklist