Anna Lapera expertly voices a young girl\'s middle school trials, but with a Voice so unique and heartfelt you will be cringing one moment and cheering the next.
Reading the letters reveals both the beauty of Guatemala and its history of violence against women, and slowly transforms Mani from quiet bystander into budding activist..
But after she Finds letters written between her mother and her disappeared-journalist aunt, Mani\'s idea of what it means to be a woman takes flight.
Mani can\'t imagine leaving behind Las Nerdas, her band of misfit friends, for the summer.
Manuela Mani Semilla wants two things: To get her period, and to thwart her mom\'s plan of taking her to Guatemala, a place that has always been more of a mystery than an answer. -- Newbery Medalist Donna Barba Higuera For fans of Donna Barba Higuera\'s Lupe Wong Won\'t Dance and Aida Salazar\'s The Moon Within, comes Mani Semilla Finds Her Quetzal Voice -- a contemporary middle grade novel full of spunk and activist heart.
She weaves a distinctive story filled with humor, family heartache, and secrets while a young girl releases the fear of her Voice and grasps its power.
Anna Lapera expertly voices a young girl\'s middle school trials, but with a Voice so unique and heartfelt you will be cringing one moment and cheering the next
