Mamamamamamaaaaaaango

I'm not sure if i should feel really depressed after finishing this book or kind of happy because as Esperanza said "One day I will pack my bags of books and paper. One day I will say goodbye to Mango. I am too strong for her to keep me here forever. One day I will go away" (110). This at least leaves the reader with some hope that maybe one person can take their experience in a horrible neighborhood and instead of falling into the cracks, learn from it and allow it to make them a stronger person. I think Esperanza realizes that her years on Mango Street have more shaped her than crushed her spirit. One of the best things about Esperanza is that she can look at the women around her and see their faults. Of course, she stumbles along the way (ex: chillen with sally slore) but throughout the book Esperanza does realize that marrying young can only lead to a trapped life.
Another revelation Esperanza stumbles upon is that wanting to leave just to escape is not enough. She recognizes "I have gone away to come back. For the ones I left behind. For the ones who cannot out" (110). I do admire her promise to come back, but I also wonder what she'll do when she returns for lets say her sister Nenny. Nenny will most likely be married, and what is Esperanza going to do? Force her to leave her husband? It seems as if all of her other friends besides Alicia will be trapped because they aren't strong enough to leave, and I question how Esperanza will be able to rescue them. On that subject, I thought the 3 sisters at the funeral were a bit far fetched for the book. Everything so far has been realistic, and parts even tragic, but the whole part about one of the women reading her mind and saying the EXACT right thing to Esperanza was pretty cheesy. This also makes me see how much Esperanza and her friends rely on the supernatural. Between her visiting the "fortune teller" and praying every day because she believes she will go to hell, I can tell that spirits are an escape for people on Mango Street. When there are no answers to why children get beaten and the neighborhood is so badly neglected, they turn to religion to provide an explanation.
I'll try to rap this up to save everyone the boredom...but lastly I was really affected by No Speak English. It was so sad because this man saved all of his money to bring "Mamacita" to America, and after she arrives all she wants to do is go back home. Then to add to her depression, her son begins speaking English and all she can do is yell at him to stop, but eventually he will be Americanized and know nothing about his real home. I really felt the frustration Mamacita had because she probably had all of these dreams about what life in America would be like, but finds Mango Street instead. Her fate is basically the opposite of what Esperanza wants. Mamacita leaves a home she loves for one that she can't stand. Here it is proven how important a home is and how much it can affect someone.


ANYWAYSSSSS I liked this book but I wish some chapters were longer so there was more of a plot line. The snippets were kewl though.


x0x0x0x0x0x0x peace and lovee