Windows into My World: Latino Youth Write Their Lives (review)

Thirty-six contributors offer personal stories in this collection of memoirs showcasing the lives of young Hispanics in the United States. Most of the writers hail from the Houston area, and this narrower focus lends a beneficial cohesiveness to the assortment. Topics range from death to homosexuality, eating disorders to immigration, and while all of the stories focus on Latino experience (a young man evaluates the Machismo lifestyle in "Men Also Cry"; a working mother tries to learn English in "Inglés in Thirty Minutes"), many of the vignettes treat subjects that are more broadly applicable (losing a loved grandparent in "See You When God Says So"; fitting in with a high school group in "Glamour"; moving away from a childhood home in "Waterloo Street"). Some of the essays dip into the didactic, sounding like answers to a college entrance essay asking what the applicant appreciates about his heritage (and most of the contributors are indeed college-aged or older, rather than the reader age-mates the title suggests), but the majority of the pieces are thought-provoking recollections, several with eloquently interspersed untranslated Spanish. Some of the shorter essays could translate into effective monologues for a high-school speech team, and the wide variety of childhood memories may appeal to older teens ready to settle in for a more reflective read. Contributor biographies are included.