Tell Us We're Home

August 23, 2010
Budhos's (Ask Me No Questions) sensitive exploration of immigrant lives focuses on eighth graders Jaya, Lola, and Maria, who are from Trinidad, Slovakia, and Mexico, respectively. They bond over the everyday conflicts and humiliations that come with being cultural outsiders and the daughters of maids in suburban New Jersey. Shy Jaya and her strong-willed mother, Mrs. Lal, do housekeeping for Mrs. Harmon, but when the elderly employer has a stroke, Mrs. Lal is accused of stealing, and Jaya and her mother face having to move. Meanwhile, Jaya worries that "she'd always be here, attached to her mother, picking up stray socks, serving chicken nuggets, and mopping floors while other kids could go out into the world and be themselves." Lola is bold and intelligent but, under pressure to run the household, she acts out at school; Maria wants to date popular Tash, but is cognizant of the racism that keeps them apart. As the girls struggle to assimilate, they drift apart, eventually recognizing the value of supportive community. The intricate characters and skillfully intertwined plots result in a convincing depiction of families overcoming isolation. Ages 12–up.

June 1, 2010
Gr 6-9-It is fate when Jaya, Maria, and Lola meet and quickly become best friends. All three eighth graders are members of immigrant families who have settled in an upscale New Jersey community. The girls find it hard to fit in because their mothers work as nannies and housekeepers for their schoolmates' families. Then Jaya's mother is accused of stealing from one of her clients, and the girls wrestle with the growing divide between them and the community and among themselves. This book holds the potential for a twist on the stale high school friendship novel but not much new is offered in that regard. The author spends a lot of time describing the girls and their histories. Their backgrounds and their relationships are thoroughly explored, but the story just isn't very interesting, and the drama of a mother being accused of stealing falls short. These three girls are outcasts, like many teens, and the story may resonate with readers who often feel like outsiders looking in. The story might have some appeal to fans of character-driven dramas."Julianna M. Helt, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA"

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