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The Tequila Worm by Viola Canales
Module 1-What is YA? Recent Award Winners
Bibliography
Canales, Viola. The tequila worm. New York: Wendy Lamb Books, 2005. ISBN 0-385-74674-1
Critical Analysis
Readers will have an understanding of Canales’s Latin culture upon reading this novel that could only be more vivid than if they shared a room with her growing up. Readers will feel as if they have sat at every meal, danced every dance and dreamed right alongside this marvelous narrator as she discovers and refines her comadre skills. The author exposes her deepest hurts and her greatest joys growing up in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Readers will connect with both her childish perspective and struggles with unkind peers as they cheer her steady resolve to be the best that she can be for her family, her culture and herself. Winner of the Pura Belpre Medal Award in 2006, The Tequila Worm allows us all to believe, love and hope like the families of McAllen’s barrio no matter our own childhood experiences. This novel examines the social issues affecting young adults with great heart and passion for pride in who you are, where you come from and the people who loved you through it all. It is more than a success story. It is a story of a storyteller who challenges us to tell our own history with authenticity and honor.
Book Hook
If you have ever been hurt by a kid in school, embarrassed of your family or unsure and confused when you had to make an important decision, you may find that you have something in common with a girl from a barrio in McAllen, Texas.
“Dona Clara visited every summer and no one missed her stories, for she came carrying a bag filled with secret things that conjured up the most amazing tales.” (Canales 2005, 1)
External Assessments
School Library Journal
Grade 5-8–Sofia, 14, lives in McAllen, TX. What she lacks in material possessions, she makes up for in personality and intelligence. When she is called a taco head by a student at her school, she decides to kick that girl by getting better grades and being a better soccer player than her tormentor. As a result of this determination, Sofia is offered a scholarship to the elite Saint Luke’s School in Austin. Now she must convince her family and herself that she is up to the challenge. Canales includes vivid descriptions of life in a Mexican-American community. Her prose is engaging and easy to read, making this novel a good choice for reluctant readers. The momentum slows a bit after Sofias arrival in Austin in contrast to the portion of the book set in McAllen. Still, the story is a good addition to most collections.–Melissa Christy Buron, Epps Island Elementary, Houston, TX. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.
Booklist
*Starred Review* Gr. 6-9. From an early age, Sofia has watched the comadres in her close-knit barrio community, in a small Texas town, and she dreams of becoming "someone who makes people into a family," as the comadres do. The secret, her young self observes, seems to lie in telling stories and "being brave enough to eat a whole tequila worm." In this warm, entertaining debut novel, Canales follows Sofia from early childhood through her teen years, when she receives a scholarship to attend an exclusive boarding school. Each chapter centers on the vivid particulars of Mexican American traditions--celebrating the Day of the Dead, preparing for a cousin's quinceanera. The explanations of cultural traditions never feel too purposeful; they are always rooted in immediate, authentic family emotions, and in Canales' exuberant storytelling, which, like a good anecdote shared between friends, finds both humor and absurdity in sharply observed, painful situations--from weathering slurs and other blatant harassment to learning what it means to leave her community for a privileged, predominately white school. Readers of all backgrounds will easily connect with Sofia as she grows up, becomes a comadre, and helps rebuild the powerful, affectionate community that raised her. Gillian Engberg. Copyright © American Library Association.
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