Wednesday, September 12, 2012

REFORMA Review: The Firefly Letters





The Firefly Letters: A Suffragette’s Journey to Cuba.
By Margarita Engle. 
New York: Henry Holt and Company 2010. 151 pp. $16.99 (Hardcover). ISBN 978-0805090826. 
Grades 5 and up. 
English with some Spanish.

Based upon the writings of Swedish suffragette Fredrika Bremer, Engle’s latest novel in verse provides readers with a glimpse into the daily lives and struggles of both free and enslaved females living in Cuba in 1851.  Told in alternating voices, as in her other historical books on Cuba, the stirring narratives skillfully demonstrate the ties that bind humans: both figuratively and physically. The main characters of Cecilia, Elena, and Frederika are complex enough to propel the story but simple enough to keep reluctant tweens and teens engaged. Includes historical and author notes, as well as references to materials by and about Fredrika Bremer.

Recommended for school and public libraries.


Naidoo, J. C. (2010). The Firefly Letters: A Suffragette’s Journey to Cuba. Written by Margarita Engle. REFORMA Newsletter, 28(1/2), 21.

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