Author: E-Fierce ISBN:978-0743285155
Publication Information: Atria
Plot Summary:Mariposa (aka. MC Patria) dreams of becoming a big MC hip hop star, spitting rhymes like Missy Elliot. After meeting Ezekiel (MC EZ), who is a big MC in the Bay Area, she spends the summer in heaven, hanging out and creating rhymes with her new best friend. Soon, though, Mari realizes that she likes Ezekiel as more than a best friend; she loves him. Unfortunately, Ezekiel already has a girlfriend, another MC (MC J-Ho 5), who has generated a lot of attention for her rhymes and good looks. Suddenly, all Mari can think about is Ezekiel, as her boyfriend, and she knows that she has to win the student talent show to have a chance at getting Ezekiel to look at her as more than just a friend. So, she teams up with three other ladies, including Ezekiel's sister, to put on a show that no one will forget. But getting four ladies together isn't always easy, and tensions, tempers, and even romance between two of the ladies fly as they get ready for the show.
Critical Evaluation:E-Fierce has created a great girl power book for homegirls and aspiring hip hop stars to read. Mariposa is an excellent protagonist and should be extremely relatable to many teen girls. She has a tough exterior, but inside has many of the same fear and self-doubt that many teens experience. Her journey of self discovery is well written, particularly with her forays into discovering her sexuality. A new twist of the urban life genre, this novel is a great book that is geared specifically towards girl that are trying to infiltrate a world that is typically very masculine and hard. To do so, Mariposa has to depend on her homegirls, and realizes that she can't make it on her own, she needs her friends for support, and for the talents that they possess. This is a great novel for both girls that are interested in hip hop and the music industry, and for teens that have begun to explore their sexuality and self-identity.
Reader's Annotation:Mariposa wants two things in life; to become a popular MC, and to get her best friend Ezekiel to love her. Too bad Ezekial already has a girlfriend, who already is a MC with a lot of street recognition. Maybe the school talent show will kill two birds with one stone, get Ezekial's attention and jump start her MC career.
Author Information: E-Fierce (Elisha Miranda) was born and raised in San Francisco, CA. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1991 with a double major in Ethic Studies and English. In 1998 she graduated from MIT with a degree in Urban Studies and Planning. In 2003 she received an MFA in writing from Columbia University. She is an activist, filmmaker and novelist. In 2001 she founded Chica Luna Productions, a production company for women of color to produce social conscious forms of entertainment. She currently lives in New York City.
Curricular Ties:Music
Genre: Urban Life
Book talking ideas:
- Did Mari have a good reason to dislike Jennifer? Why or why not?
- Why was Mari attracted to Ezekial? To Sadie?
- Why was Liza so reluctant to break up with Rio? Do you think she should have broken up with him? Why or why not?
Challenge issues:Mild sexuality
- Familiarize yourself with the book and its contents.
- Check the library for specific policies on challenged books.
- Check the ALA website for advice on how to respond and react when a book has been challenged. (http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/challengeslibrarymaterials/index.cfm)
- Find positive reviews from reputable websites.
- Ask the challenger for their specific objections and try to address them using information from the above research.
Interest Age: Grades 9 and up
Why I selected this piece: A lot of the teens that frequent one of the branches of the SFPL I frequent love this book, so I thought I'd read it to see why.
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