Each Tiny Spark

Starred review from June 10, 2019
Tension ignites in this layered, culturally rich novel set in an Atlanta suburb when Cuban-American Emilia’s software developer mother leaves on a business trip just as her father returns from military deployment. Cartaya (Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak Spanish) sensitively portrays how this upheaval amplifies the 12-year-old’s Inattentive Type ADHD—without her mother’s support, Emilia struggles to cope with assignments, friendships, and devoted but controlling Abuela. Amid this turmoil, Emilia and her father bond over welding, but the girl doesn’t comprehend his mood swings, which she gradually comes to understand as PTSD. Cartaya deftly sketches her family’s variable takes on Emilia’s heritage—her abuela touts their European roots and Emilia’s fair skin, while her mother highlights her Yoruba ancestry—and seamlessly weaves Spanish into the narrative. As a school project awakens Emilia’s awareness of her town, she takes an interest in timely immigration issues as well as economic and racial prejudices around proposed school redistricting, and she comes to recognize and confront a friend’s bigotry. The narrative appropriately tackles tough topics with grace through the lens of this memorable heroine. Ages 10–up. Agent: Jess Regel, Foundry Literary + Media.

Author/narrator Pablo Cartaya easily transitions between English and Spanish, authentically representing the bilingual world of Cuban-American Emilia Rosa Torres, who has ADHD. Cartaya's emotional presentation allows listeners to feel Emilia's struggles when her stable homelife changes. Her mother travels for business, her father returns home from deployment, her abuela becomes even more controlling, and Emilia must adjust. Cartaya's nuanced narration shows how Emilia gradually reveals her true self, her voice gaining power in the face of her father's PTSD, shifts in friendships, and encounters with prejudice. As life grows more complex, Cartaya reveals the depth of a girl whose intelligence and love are strengthened by an awareness of her heritage, and the economic and social injustices around her. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award � AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine