this was sweet.

I’m Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter – Erika L. Sanchez

Young adult, Mexican heritage, grieving, mental health, fiction.

Rating 8/10

Julia is recovering from the death of her sister, and so does her family. They all are devastated and trying to cope in their own ways. However, her mother tries so hard to understand Julia and why Julia wasn’t like her sister. Julia doesn’t want to be like her sister. Rather she wants to understand why she looked at her phone before she got hit by the bus, or why there was lingerie in her closet. Plus, mysterious emails with some hidden truths. When Julia has had enough of her mother’s ways, something bad happens and caused them to become closer together with a newer understanding.

This book was so good and underappreciated. The book discusses mental health among Mexican families, their heritages, and traditions. A different perspective that is authentic and true because it is never easy trying to do things beyond the household without the parents being concerned for their child and how sometimes parents don’t understand their children and vice versa. I loved this book, and the pacing was nice, and the plot was thorough. Parts did bring tears to my eyes because I understand how it is hard losing a loved one who was close yet so far away. It is never easy, but life comes and goes. When I was grieving my grandfather’s death, I wished he could stay longer, but he had lived a long and fulfilling life. He is never really gone because I know he is with me in my heart. Like the main character, grief is different from person to person. I loved this book and do recommend this novel.

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