Becoming Maria: Love and Chaos in the South Bronx

Pura Belpr Honor winner for The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano and one of America's most influential Hispanics--'Maria' on Sesame Street--delivers a beautifully wrought coming-of-age memoir.

Set in the 1950s in the Bronx, this is the story of a girl with a dream. Emmy Award-winning actress and writer Sonia Manzano plunges us into the daily lives of a Latino family that is loving--and troubled. This is Sonia's own story rendered with an unforgettable narrative power. When readers meet young Sonia, she is a child living amidst the squalor of a boisterous home that is filled with noisy relatives and nosy neighbors. Each day she is glued to the TV screen that blots out the painful realities of her existence and also illuminates the possibilities that lie ahead. But--click --when the TV goes off, Sonia is taken back to real life--the cramped, colorful world of her neighborhood and an alcoholic father. But it is Sonia's dream of becoming an actress that keeps her afloat among the turbulence of her life and times. Spiced with culture, heartache, and humor, this memoir paints a lasting portrait of a girl's resilience as she grows up to become an inspiration to millions.

Publisher: Scholastic Press
Published: 08/25/2015
Pages: 272
Weight: 0.8lbs
Size: 8.30h x 5.60w x 1.10d
ISBN: 9780545621847
Age: Young Adult

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 5.5
Point Value: 11
Interest Level: Upper Grade
Quiz #/Name: 175631 / Becoming Maria: Love and Chaos in the South Bronx


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 06/01/2015 pg. 83
Kirkus Reviews 06/15/2015
Publishers Weekly 07/13/2015
School Library Journal 09/01/2015 pg. 187
Horn Book Magazine 09/01/2015 pg. 129
New York Times Book Review 11/08/2015 pg. 36
NY Times Notable Bks of Year 12/06/2015 pg. 34
Kirkus Best Young-Adult Books 12/01/2015 pg. 64

About the Author
Sonia Manzano has affected the lives of millions since the early 1970s, as the actress who defined the role of "Maria" on the acclaimed television series Sesame Street. Sonia has won fifteen Emmy Awards for her television writing and is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Academy of Arts and Sciences. People magazine named Sonia one of America's most influential Hispanics. She lives in New York City.